Phoenix
by Blaze Sanders
Summary: Twilight like characters. A shape-shifting family with the power to transform into mythical phoenix birds battle against deadly adversaries while the youngest member of the clan, a teenage girl, struggles with a forbidden romance between a family enemy.
1. An Unwanted Visitor

**Phoenix**

**Prologue**

All I hear is heavy panting. My breath is ragged; my lungs burning. I'm running and running fast. Faster than I've ever run before. The wind hisses in my ears, protesting to its sudden displacement; tree branches whip my face and leave traces of blood that mingle with my tears, but I don't stop. I ignore the throbbing pain in my legs and press onward as fast as I can. The forest in which I run is strange to me; I've never before ventured into it. I stumble on loose rocks and patches of scattered sand, once or twice trampling into a tree that I didn't know existed. I'm catching up.

I can see wisps of a red coattail disappearing behind a bend a few feet in front of me. I quicken my pace, a feat which I thought was impossible. The vegetation gets steadily thicker as I venture farther into the untamed wilderness, in close pursuit of a creature that had no business being in this world.

**Chapter One: An Unwanted Visitor**

Phoenix, Arizona, one of the sunniest places in the world…and one of the hottest. But it's a dry heat, or so I've been told. It's also my birthplace and my namesake, or at least one of the dual meanings behind my name. With a name like Phoenix Faryn I was pretty much the prime target of bullying and name calling as a kid, but my classmates had every right to call me a "weirdo" even if they were ignorant to the truth behind their jabs.

In Egyptian mythology, the phoenix possessed the ability to live for extended periods of time by bursting into flames only to be reborn from the ashes. They also were supposed to be extremely fast healers making them almost indestructible. For these reasons they have been used as a symbol of strength, immortality, and beauty. Throughout history these magnificent legends have surfaced in various cultures spanning from the Ancient Aztecs to the Chinese. Many have marveled at the vastness of this myth. How could the same creature be replicated by immensely different tribes with absolutely no contact between them; with the entire Atlantic or Pacific Ocean as an impossible barrier?

The answer to that question is simple. It's not a myth. Firebirds are tangible, completely real creatures, though like every myth, folklore, or fairytale, the facts seemed to have been stretched a bit. For example, phoenixes aren't birds. Not necessarily, I should say. We take human forms because, for the most part, we are human. The gift to transform is highly unusual and revered. It takes a skilled firebird to be able to change his or her molecular makeup and this normally occurs during times or high stress or desperation. Once the transformation is learned, however, it can never be forgotten. Like riding a bike, except in this case the bike ride mutates you into a mythical bird and you'll probably catch on fire. Yeah, the bursting into flames and being reborn from the ashes part of the myth is total rubbish, but if one can transform one can also teleport themselves to any destination by way of flames. It's pretty sick! The phoenix will burst into flames and the ashes will rebuild the human form wherever the end point is, but sometimes the flames aren't entirely accurate and the clothes with not_ stop _burning.

For the rest of us who aren't quite as cool, the only real thing that we have going for us is the fire bending. It's a seriously insane skill regardless! Firebirds have the power to create and manipulate—you guessed it—fire and, if we wanted to, we could set a whole city a blaze in about 10 seconds flat. Of course, we would never do that (I've been told by the Elders that it would be "sadistic" which is a bad thing). Of course, as a six year old with the power to set things ablaze, I was considered the school's fire starter, you know like that Stephen King movie with Drew Barrymore. My kindergarten teacher was supplied with three fire extinguishers after I accidental lit a few puppets on fire. I don't know what the big deal was; the flames only got five feet high at the most! Luckily, we're impervious to flames. I imagine that flames shooting out of a normal person's hands would leave some very nasty burns. Actually, we're impervious to mostly everything. I mean, we can get hurt—we bleed, bruise, and break—but the regeneration process is almost instantaneous. Apparently, our blood contains a powerful healing agent that constantly courses through our bodies keeping it strong and virtually indestructible. The blood can be used to heal others as well, but it's less effective because in order to extract the blood, we have to cut ourselves and the wound heals within a couple seconds. The Elders are all about saving humans at any expense, so they make us carry pocketknives at all times in case we have to slit our wrist to heal a mangled child or something. I'm surprised that I've never been called into the guidance counselor's office for suicidal tendencies.

The only time I've ever used my blood to heal another was when I was twelve. It was also the first time anybody besides another mythical creature learned about our existence. At the time, I had little control over my abilities and would accidentally catch things on fire (like an unlucky puppet) or send flames pulsing up my arms. Madeline, my best friend, and I were playing tag in her backyard. My adrenaline was pumping which is a stimulus for fire; a defense mechanism. Since fire is second nature to me, I didn't notice that my skin was expelling small licks of flames along my arms, but Maddie did…once she tagged me, that is. She reached out to grab my arm and pulled it back in pain. Her entire right hand was on fire, the flames making their way up her wrist. Needless to say, I was in shock. Realizing what I had done, I was able to extinguish the flames on my arms, making it safe to touch Maddie. I grabbed her arm and pulled the flames off of her hand using my fire bending skills and allowed the flames to dissipate into the atmosphere. Her hand was badly burned, though. The skin was an angry maroon color, obviously a second if not third degree burn. I had to help her somehow; her agonizing screams were more than I could bear. Thinking of the knife Karlstadt had given me in case of emergencies, I whipped it out of my back pocket, pushed the switch which unlocked the blade and, in one sweeping motion, sliced a clean cut into my forearm. Only five or six drops of blood had a chance to escape before my skin regenerated and closed the wound, but it was more than enough. Her skin returned to its natural apricot cream color and the scarred skin disappeared without a trace. Her breathing returned to normal leaving only her tear streaked face as evidence of the injury. I remember her brow shoot up into her bangs as her eyes darted from her perfectly healed hand to me and back. There was never a moment of anticipation that rivaled that one. Would she be freaked out? Would she never want to talk to me again, afraid that I would hurt her? She would never tell anybody, would she? What would Grandpa, Grandma, and Karlstadt—the Elders—say about this? My fears were for nothing, though. Madeline replied with the most exceptional statement in the world—"I hope you don't have AIDS." She smiled at me and asked me to tell her everything. It was against the Code of the Firebird to allow any human to be aware of our existence, but how could I refuse her. There will never be another Madeline for me. Our souls were intertwined, the same. We understood each other—I trusted her with my life, and she reciprocated. There were never two sisters that were closer than me and Maddie; we just click. I'm the one person that Madeline can turn to in any sticky situation; her parents are never around to realize what an amazing person she really is. Of course the Elders were furious after I told them. I got screamed at for a full day, but thankfully my age finally did something useful. I was apparently too young to understand my mistake.

Being the youngest member of the firebird population normally doesn't have many perks: you're not allowed to fight the exciting enemies, you're not allowed to listen in on the council meetings, and you're always being ordered about…it sucks!

Firebirds live for an extremely long time, the longest being 3965 years, but have a low reproduction rate. To put this into prospective, my mother and father are 513 and 657 years old and my brother is 153 years old. I'm 18. I was also born on an off century which means that there probably won't be another firebird born for the next hundred years or so. Firebirds mature at the normal human growth rates until the age of seventeen and then they gain approximately a year of aging every fifty years. So as of last year, I will not age another day until the next half century elapses. Our clan's Elders include my grandfather Horus, age 2242, my grandmother Isis, age 2169, and Karlstadt, age 1992. As you can see, my parents, Phoenicia and Thaddeus, are incredibly fertile creatures. Normally, firebirds have one to two children within the span of their entire existence; my parents popped two out within an seventh of their life.

Our life spans are influenced by two factors. The first is physical strength which is directly related to the second factor—birth place. Phoenixes are fire creatures and absorb the heat from their surroundings. At birth, the firebird's life force is fueled by the heat extracted from the environment. As firebirds originated in Egypt, a phoenix born in a desert will live the longest because the greatest amount of heat can be obtained in these environments. That's not to say a phoenix can't be born in a cool environment. Karlstadt, for example, was born in what's now present day Germany, my brother Helios was born in Greece and some clans live in India, Brazil and other lush environments. Lucky for me, I was born in the Valley of the Sun…yippee (sarcasm abounding)! It's not that I don't want to see centuries of change and history, but what am I going to do for that long a time? And what about the human friends that I make? There are only so many evil creatures in the world to destroy, a girl gets bored! My brother's enthusiasm makes it so much worse, too. He's always challenging me to stupid little competitions to see who can throw flames the farthest and who can produce the hottest fire. It's so unfair! Of course he's going to win; he's 135 years older than me!!! And I can't bring any of my mortal girlfriends home out of embarrassment. You'd think that after more than a century of life the hormones would have worn off, but no, he hits on anything that walks! His reasoning for his piggish behavior is that Greek girls in the mid-1800s weren't exactly bleach blonde volleyball players in miniskirts. Helios is not exactly the most couth firebird, but as much as I hate to admit it, he does have a ton of potential. The Elders expect him to transform at a young age, maybe even beat the record. The youngest master phoenix, as we call them (having the ability to transform into the firebird), was 232 years old and even my parents haven't reached that level yet, which isn't out of the ordinary. The average age for mastery is around 650 years old which is totally pathetic if you think about it. Most of the firebird population aren't even able to change into their trademark appearance—the crimson bird! Majorly lame!

So, as for me, I'm stuck in a crummy high school learning AP Euro History while I could be learning about Cleopatra and Ptolemy for my grandparents, both of whom were quite chummy with the incestuous couple back in the day…way, way, way, WAY back in the day. It's a total drag, but my mother tells me that it will help me acclimate myself into the human world and learn to control my fire bending. That's total b.s.; I could hardly stop myself from melting Kyle Jefferson's shoes to the floor when he hit-on me last week (to be perfectly honest, I actually did melt his shoes to the floor). I'm not even that good looking, either! That is unless you think bright red curly hair is sexy. I'm pretty much the palest person in the universe, too. It's the perks of being a firebird, we all are insanely fair skinned even though most of us live in the desert. How stupid is that? My grandmother and I are the only redheads in the family though; we're called fairbloods, which means that as a firebird, we'll have crimson-gold feathers. Despite what many people think, phoenixes aren't all reddish-gold in color. When we change our shape we take on our human attributes. I'm told that I'm quite lucky; fairbloods are the most revered of our kind…whoopty-do.

As I entered my senior year, I swore to myself that I would do all that I could to find a bit more adventure. I mean, what's the point of being a firebird if you're not allowed to set anything on fire? Little did I know, things were going to take a completely whacked-out turn for the worse.

*********

"Phi… Earth to Phhiii…PHOENIX!!" Maddie snapped, her thin tan hand waving back and forth in front of my eyes, her sleek brown hair falling in front of her chocolate brown eyes as she leaned closer to me. I blinked out of my daze and gave her a weak smile. With that, she straightened up to her full five foot six height. "Oh, glad you decided to join us."

"Sorry, I must've dosed off," I said.

"No big surprise there…" Maddie said, snatching away the newspaper that I had been looking at. "Massive earthquakes in Tucson, really interesting."

"Nice, Maddie, real nice. Don't you think it's weird?" I asked grabbing back the paper. "There isn't exactly an active fault line near Tucson."

"Whatever. Unlike you, I'm not really into the whole doom and gloom world events. It gets me depressed," she answered back.

"You know that twenty-seven people died?" I asked her as I reread the article.

"You know my saying—live fast, die young," she said offhandedly.

I rolled my eyes. "That should be your senior quote, it's very insightful."

"Good idea! And speaking of the yearbook, notice anything different?" Madeline said, gesturing oh-so-subtly to a clunky black digital camera hanging from her neck by a thick strap.

"Wait…did you get a nose job? I didn't want to say anything before, but man did you have one hell of a snonoz!"

"Haha…very funny. Say cheese, this is going in the yearbook!" Maddie focused the lenses so she could take a close up of me. As the only senior in the yearbook club, she was promoted to head photographer, a position that was starting to annoy. The constant clicking and flashing lights were enough to send anybody into a seizure. I decided that I'd throw her a bone on the first day of school and let her take four or five pictures of me in various vogue posses. "See, you're a natural. The camera loves you!"

"Ugh, I hate you sometimes, Maddie. Can't you find anybody else to annoy?" I asked as I put down the newspaper and turned back to the Bio summer reading that I was supposed to have finished by today but didn't because I had been way too busy with my fire bending. As an eighteenth birthday gift, my mother gave me permission to fire bend whenever I wanted, which was by far the best gift ever! You have no idea how annoying it was to have to practice fire bending with my mother or the Elders as supervision and then get grounded when I slipped up and succumbed to temptation when they weren't around (like when I melted Kyle's shoes to the floor).

"Uh-oh, I think you might get your wish! Major hottie alert," Maddie said as she redirected her camera in true stalker form towards a completely gorgeous boy lounging casually on the school steps. "Who is he? I've never seen him before."

"I don't know, but there's one way to find out," I said as I closed my bio textbook.

"Wait…what? You're going to go talk to him? Are you crazy? You're gonna make a fool out of yourself, Phi, and I'm gonna have to pick up the pieces!" she screeched. A random freshman scurried quickly away, clearly concerned about Maddie's mental health. "Man, he is soooo gorgeous!" That was no lie. I normally wouldn't attempt anything this bold, but it was like I was being drawn to him. His pale white skin gleamed in the hot Arizona sun while his dirty-blond curls blew in the wind. His tall, muscular frame was stretched out over the steps which caused his white polo to ride up over his perfectly sculpted abs. But it was more than just his beautiful, prefect body that was drawing me to him. I felt like I knew him from somewhere, but couldn't quite put my finger on the actually where and whens. It was like he was an old friend that I couldn't pass on the street without saying hello. I was halfway to the stairs when his eyes flickered open and met mine, flashing silver before fading into a deep emerald green color. _Oh, shit! Turns out I did know him after all and he was no friend. _ I quickly spun around and grabbed Madeline's hand on the way.

"What, you chickening out? I thought you were fearless!" she laughed.

"Just hurry up, okay?" I said tersely.

"What's the matter? He just looked at you, you might've even had a chance," she reasoned.

"Did you see his eyes? They were silver!" I shouted.

"No they weren't. All I saw were the most amazing green eyes in the world," she gushed, clearly not grasping my point.

"Why, thank you. I've never receive a compliment that could revival such kindness," said a soft, velvet smooth voice that had a hint of a British accent. Madeline stopped in her tracks as I continued to pull her forward, but to no avail. She let out a nervous giggle and squeezed my hand. I only had two options: to make a run for it and leave Maddie here drooling or to turn around and act cordial. I decide to play it cool.

"Noah, how've you been?"

"My dear Phoenix, you look stunning, by far the most beautiful fairblood I've ever seen," Noah said with a breath-taking smile.

"Somebody wanna fill me in here?" Madeline asked, finally jolted out of her dumbfounded stupor.

"Oh, how rude of me. I'm Noah Wilder. I've known Phoenix for a very long time. Who might you be?" he asked way too politely.

"Umm… Madeline," she said uncertainly, it sounded more like a question. She turned to me and covertly asked, "Is he a you-know-what??"

"No, he's not. Let's go Maddie, my AP Euro class is on the other side of the school, I can't be late the first day." I pulled at her sleeve and we both made it two steps before Noah interrupted.

"Phoenix what do you have against me? We're so much the same. I'm only trying to help."

I whipped around. The intensity of his eyes caught me by surprise, leaving me momentarily mute, but I recovered quickly. "So much the same? How can you say that? I don't kidnap little girls, Noah!"

"We were trying to protect you, Phoenix. You were young, barely five, and your clan was severely oblivious to the impending danger targeting you. We had to help, it's what we do."

"Oh, you're playing the hero card, huh? You're no better than a sylph or a drac or any other monster that you can think of!!!" I screeched causing a few bewildered underclassmen to dart away quickly

"No, Phoenix. We always had your best interest at heart. The problem with firebirds is that they only register supernatural dangers; it never occurs to them that the creatures they protect could pose a threat! You protect humans; we protect everything else worth saving. And you were so innocent, you still are. We knew that your Elders wouldn't hear us out; they don't understand our calling, they're too proud to accept help from seraphim. The only thing we could do was bring you to a safe haven while we tracked down the threat. How could you think that we ever meant you harm? We treated you with the utmost respect while you stayed with us," he pleaded.

"You better get out of town before my family goes medieval on you," I managed to choke out before turning around. I grabbed Maddie's arm and was able to drag her to the next hallway over, before she stopped me and threw me a severely confused glare.

"What was that about? You were kidnapped by that gorgeous boy when you were five?" she hissed.

"He's not a boy, he's a seraph. And technically his entire tribe kidnapped me," I said.

"Okay…THAT ANSWERS NOTHING, PHI!!! What is a seraph and why the hell did they kidnap you? Why didn't you tell me about this?!" she shouted, thankfully we were in the language hall so the teachers couldn't understand us and the students, not even trying to make it to class on time, were still out in the quad enjoying the morning sun.

I let out an exasperated sigh. "You know how phoenixes are fire creatures? Well, seraphim are light creatures. Not to burst your Catholic bubble or anything, but they probably influenced the angel stories of the Bible. Seeing as though they're practically made out of light, they always have that disgusting halo around them, ugh…"

"Oh, you mean the otherworldly, please take advantage of me glow that Noah had going on?..."

"Madeline, stop it! This is serious!" I snapped.

"I'm being serious, jeesh! I'm just saying, as a completely unbiased third party observer…"

"Maddie, so help me I will light your camera on fire if you don't shut up!"

"Okay, okay, sorry. No need to get all defensive about it."

"You done now? Good. So seraphim also have three pairs of wings that they're able to retract into their skin, they're not anything like firebirds, but they're our closest relatives, like animal kingdom relatives not Uncle Joe and Aunt Cathy relatives…"

"Got it."

"…Because they're light creatures, they can control any aspect of light and can manipulate the wavelength frequencies. That's how they kill, by infecting bodies with gamma radiation, it's completely weird! No creature can function when their cells are getting all messed up from radiation poisoning, but our blood protects us from their little tricks. We won't die, but we still get really screwed up, our blood can't heal us that quickly. Firebirds aren't the biggest fans of the seraphim because they're all high and mighty pretending to be the saviors of the world, but we were able to co-exist easy enough before the whole kidnapping incident.

Noah's tribe was convinced that some Egyptologist had been researching firebird and phoenix myths all his life and had witnessed Karlstadt take down a sand beast while on a dig. He somehow tracked Karlstadt back to Arizona. Genevieve, that's Noah's sister, told me that his research had led him to believe that if he killed me, the youngest firebird in the clan, he would be able to drain my blood, drink it, and live forever…"

"That is seriously messed up! And she told you all of this when you were five? Who does that?"

"Well, not in so many words, but I kinda got the gist after a month of eavesdropping. So I guess the clan kidnapped me in order to "keep me safe" while they tried to find and destroy that human, which doesn't make sense because humans can't kill firebirds even if they have Ph. Ds in Egyptology. Needless to say, when they returned me three months later without any evidence (like a gamma-mutated corpse) to support their theory, my family was extremely pissed off. Hence, family grudge ensued and we've come full circle," I finished.

"Whoa. That's intense. So did they torture the secrets of the Firebird Nation out of you or something?" Maddie asked, seriously curious by this point.

I frowned. "No, of course not. First of all, there is no such thing as "secrets of the Firebird Nation" and secondly, my family would have crucified Noah and his tribe had they done anything that even remotely resembled torture!"

"So what's your grudge against hot-bod?" she asked.

"Are you seriously, Madeline? He. Kidnapped. Me. Kidnapped, as in stealing a child away from her family!" I screeched.

"Okay, okay, calm down, Phi, I understand. It was a joke. Do you want me to make sure that he doesn't bother you anymore? I could ask Luke, Cliff, and Landon to be your body guards. I'm sure they wouldn't mind, especially Cliff, he's practically in love with you," Maddie rambled.

"Maddie, how the hell have I put up with you for so long? I'm fairly certain that Cliff isn't in love with me, he's just afraid that if he makes me angry his possessions will mysteriously end up catching on fire," I replied.

Madeline gave me a skeptical look and rolled her eyes. "You're retarded, you know that? Every guy in this ridiculously large high school would have no qualms against hooking up with you."

"That's because they're guys, Madeline. They wouldn't have any qualms about hooking up with anything that moves," I answered truthfully.

"That's not what I meant and you know it," she retorted.

"Maddie, stop it. It's so not true."

"Oh, really?..." She turned to grab a passerby's arm, one of the only students in the hallway. I vaguely remembered his face and thought his name was Cayden Maloire. "Hey, what do you think of my friend here?" she asked him. I was completely blushing by this point. My cheeks were almost on fire, it took all of my strength to suppress the flames.

Cayden gave me the once over and smirked. I glared at him. "She's probably the most beautiful girl I've ever met." He smiled and reached into his pocket while I muttered an awkward thank you for lack of anything better to say. "Can I have your number, maybe we could hang out sometime? Maybe catch a movie?"

My eyes bulged out of my sockets. "Ummm…well, I…"

"She's not interested, I was just proving a point," Madeline finished harshly. Cayden blinked in surprise before his shoulders slumped in dismay.

"No, wait a minute. You still want my number?" What else was I supposed to do? I didn't want to seem like a bitch.

"Yeah, definitely!!" he said enthusiastically, handing me the scrap of paper and a ball point pen. I quickly scribbled down my number, hoping that if it was messy he wouldn't be able to read it. I forced a fake smile when I handed the paper back to him.

"What the hell was that, Mad?" I snapped once Cayden had skipped away down the hall.

"Hey, I got you an easy out. You're the one who gave him your number," she answered coolly.

"Only because I would seem like a totally insensitive jerk if I didn't," I hissed back.

"Oh well. He probably won't even call you, but still he proved my point. Every guy here has a thing for you including Noah," she stated.

"Okay, not discussing this here. I'll see you at lunch," I said heatedly before turning and heading towards the AP Euro History room.

"Phoenix, don't be mad at me," she shouted as I turned the corner. I made no reply.


	2. Hallucinations

**Chapter Two: Hallucinations **

The hallways were much more crowded now that the first bell had rung. I wormed my way through the throng of slowly moving students; holding out my heavy textbook to part the sea of people. The stairs were less crowded and I was able to take them two at a time without ramming into anybody, but I was still three hallways from my classroom when the final bell rang.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath. A long-haired boy who had been leaning nonchalantly against a locker, either oblivious or indifferent to the bell, looked up.

"Need a pass? The best forgeries in the school," he whispered; you'd have thought he was dealing drugs.

"No thanks. It's the first day, right? I should get off easy," I said off-handedly. With a wave to the future drug lord of Phoenix, I picked up my pace and managed to get to class about a minute later.

"Enos, Bradley…Fairbank, Katelyn…Farrell, Marcus…Faryn, Phoenix…"

"HERE!!" I shouted as I came to an abrupt stop in front of the roll-calling teacher.

"A little late, Miss Faryn. Don't let it happen again. Take a seat, please," he said as he moved on to Garner, Patricia who answered with a high-pitched "here." My eyes scanned the sea of teenagers, looking for an open seat. Surprisingly for an AP class, there was only one seat available.

"Shit!" I muttered for the second time in five minutes. The only free seat was directly in back of Noah Wilder. Seriously, I was about to punch him out. As my eyes locked with his, he gave me a sinister wave and winked. I could just about see the angry steam rolling off my body.

I must admit that I wasn't trying all that hard to hide my annoyance. I let out an infuriated groan, rolled my eyes and practically stomped up the aisle, and once there I torn my bag off my shoulder and let it crash to the floor, hitting Noah on the head in the process. I slumped into my seat and stared out the widow, hoping that if visual contact with Noah was broken I'd be able to forget about his existence.

"You seem a bit off today." I turned to look at Noah, a knee-jerk reaction, and instantly regretted it. His brilliant green eyes looked all serious and puppy-doggish that I actually felt bad for being a jerk to the boy whose family kidnapped me. How unfair!

"Oh, you think? This isn't exactly the best day of my life, mainly because you're here," I hissed back, trying to regain my previous state of anger.

"Phoenix, believe me I care about you more than you'll ever know. My whole family does, but lately it's like you've been calling out to me. I suppose the hormones are kicking in or something because I can't stop thinking about you," he said.

"Do seraphim even have hormones?" I asked in a whisper. It was supposed to be a rhetorical question and act as a conversation ender, but, of course, he replied.

"I assume so, how else would I be feeling what I'm feeling?"

"Look Noah, I'm not interested. We just don't fit, you know? My family hates your family, your family kidnaps small children…it just can't work," I said in mock sympathy.

"Please, meet me after school and let me explain exactly what happened the last time we met. It'll all make sense, I promise. Please, just give me that much," he pleaded.

I sighed. "I don't think so, Noah."

"That's okay. You'll come around eventually," he said with confidence before winking and turning forward again.

I furrowed my brow in confusion. What did he mean _I'd come around eventually_?

And that evil twinkle in his eyes, those perfect green orbs that sparkled with the light harnessed within his body, his perfectly sculpted and muscular body. How could I ignore him for much longer when he was sitting right in front of me? I could smell the sweet, soapy aroma that his shampoo left on his blond curls. They were in touching distance; I could easily stroke my fingers through his locks if I wanted to. And I did want to. I wanted to do more than stroke his perfect tendrils.

Without thinking, I grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. The look of confusion on his face was adorable, but the feel of his soft, warm lips on mine was even better. I pressed myself closer to him, by now I was kneeling on top of my desk, my hands wrapped around his polo tee-shirt as I yanked him closer. He willingly came. His arms found my waist and traced up my spine leaving a trail of tingling warmth…

"YOU BASTARD!!" I screeched indignantly, jumping up from my chair. All eyes turned on me and the room went silent.

"Excuse me, Miss Faryn?" Mr. Larken, the history teacher, exclaimed.

"Oh, umm…." _Shit, shit, shit!_ "I'm…ummm…sorry. It must have been a trick of the light," I said the last part more to Noah than to Mr. Larken. Noah was going to see me after school all right; he'd be the one with third degree burns all over his face!

"Miss Faryn, you're really making quite a first impression, first you're late for class…"

"Can I go to the nurse?!" I said much too loudly in a gasping voice. I must look like such a freak! "I think I'm running a fever. The weather must be getting to me."

"Yeah, I can almost feel the heat coming off of her as we speak," Noah said. I shot him a nasty look.

"Oh, well, this offers us the perfect opportunity to demonstrate my Jeopardy Hall Pass game. If you can answer a question about Euro History, you may go to the nurse," said Mr. Larken, completely forgetting my sudden outburst of profanity.

"Mr. Larken, really is this necessary? I mean, I _really_ need to go to the nurse!" I begged.

"Now, Now. There's no exception to the rule! Okay…let me see, the infamous risqué daughter of Pope Alexander VI?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes in defeat. "Who is Lucrezia Borgia, Alex Trebeck?"

"Correct!! Apparently you completed your summer reading assignment," he said as he ripped a pass off of the pad and handed it to me.

"Thanks," I muttered as I grabbed it.

"Oh, my! Your hands _are _burning up!!" he exclaimed. In my current, flustered state, I hadn't kept an eye on my body temperature. It must have been around a hundred and ten degrees which would register as unusually hot to a human touch.

"I'll be okay," I said tersely and bolted for the door. Once I rounded the corner, I whipped out my cell phone and skillfully dialed my brother's number.

"Hello?" his rough voice answered on the first ring.

"Hey, it's me. I'm bunking today. Meet me at the corner of 67th and Northern Ave," I said in a huff.

"Bunking on the first day? I like to see that my presence is finally rubbing off on you! I'll be there in five. Want me to drive?"

"No, I have the car here," I said and snapped my phone shut. I needed to talk to someone and seeing as though Madeline was strictly against skipping school for fear of getting detention, Helios was the only other logical choice. I mean, I couldn't very well call up my parents or one of the Elders when I was supposed to be in class, could I? Helios was the epitome of stealth, nobody would even know he's gone.

I pushed the glass doors open and let the warm, Arizona sun wash over my face, relishing in the sudden burst of energy that it charged me with. It was one of the best feelings in the world. My car was parked just around the corner of the school, completely out of view from any straying eye; it only took me ten or eleven seconds to reach it. I tossed my bag into the passenger's seat and rounded the front of the car to jump behind the wheel when I saw a very unwelcome face.

"Wow, a Pontiac Firebird. That's um…really clever. Thank goodness you're not a Gremlin," he said in a subdued tone, chuckling at his own absurd joke.

"Hahaha. That's so funny! Now leave me ALONE! Can't you take a hint?" I shouted.

"Calm down and just hear me out. Let me ride with you, please," he asked.

"Hmmm, get in a car with a known kidnapper…I think I'll pass!" I said sarcastically as I tried to push my way passed him. His firm, toned arms snagged me by my waist creating an unbreakable vise. "Let me go, now!"

"Not until you listen! I promise, only good can come of it!" he whispered, his arms still tightly suctioned around my waist.

"I don't owe you anything after that little trick you played in Euro class!" I screeched struggling against his grip, albeit half-heartedly. Even though I hated him, I really didn't mind that his gorgeous body was so close to mine.

"All the emotions you felt were yours, my dear. I merely forced you to see something that wasn't actually happening. Cortexium waves are rather useful in that sense, though firebirds have the best reception to the wave frequency that we use. In humans, the image wouldn't have been so clear, but still…you looked like you were enjoying it," he said smugly.

That was the final straw. My vision turned a mucky crimson color with anger and I could no longer contain the fire burning within me. Flames spewed from my body, concentrated mostly around my waist where his tight grip held me in place. He immediately let out a yelp of surprise, released his arms from around me and jumped backwards.

"Was that really necessary?" he shook his head in mock-annoyance, but I could see a grin spreading across his face. He was completely unharmed save for a few brown burn spots on his shirt—too bad.

"I told you to let me go!" I shot back, edging closer to the driver's side door.

"That you did, I just didn't think you'd go to such extremes. Umm…Phi, you're on fire," he said gesturing toward my sweater. The flames had almost incinerated it completely! I deftly pulled the flames from the burning inferno that was once my favorite Chanel cashmere sweater and winced when I saw what was left of the carnage. There was no hope in saving this fine piece of apparel. Damn Noah Wilder!

"Oh well, there's really no need for a sweater in Arizona. It's a hundred and five out already," he pointed out nonchalantly. I stared at him dumbfounded.

"Ugh. It's not like I'll get heat stroke anyway, my body's always hotter than the outside temperature! This was my favorite sweater!!!!" I bellowed.

Noah rolled his eyes and stared unbuttoning his polo. I scrunched my eyes up in confusion as he pulled the shirt over his head and revealed a godly set of abs. My mouth dropped open into a lolling O of surprise at this unexpected, yet completely appreciated, strip tease. "Here, there's practically nothing left of you sweater …not that I mind, it's just that it's more proper for you to be fully dressed."

I was still stunned by the faint glow that excreted for every pore of his skin, casting faint shadows around the musculature of his six pack. "You're very immature for being like a hundred years old!" I figured that a trivial assertion would distract him from the fact that I was otherwise lost for words while looking at his gorgeous, luminescent body.

He grinned as I pulled off the charred remains of my sweater, revealing a perfect set of pearly whites. My camisole was in pretty poor condition, as well, but it afforded me a small amount of privacy as I shrugged his white polo over my head. "I'm a hundred and forty-five actually," he answered off-handedly still staring at me. It was truly starting to freak me out a bit.

"Oh, well I suppose in guy years that's like twelve. I guess your right on track," I said as I busied myself with the buttons.

He let out a soft laugh which caused a small burst of light to erupt from his body. Startled, I yelped and jumped backwards, crashing into the car door. His laughter doubled, but the light emanating from his body returned to a faint glow. "Please excuse me. I'm very sorry," he said, placing a hand on my shoulder to steady me. I shrugged it off, completely embarrassed.

"I've got to go, my brother's waiting for me," I muttered turning my back on him and opening the door. The same perfect hand that had grasped my shoulder seconds before reached out and pinned the door shut. "Noah, really please stop it!"

"No."

"You're not coming with me," I said tersely.

"Then neither of us is going to leave. I don't know about you, but this parking lot isn't all that aesthetically pleasing. I'd take my chances with the kidnapper, if I were you, it'll be way more interesting," he whispered in my ear, his head bent inches away from mine. A shiver went up my spine.

"Fine. Get in," I huffed with a resigned sigh.

An irresistible smile spread across his face.


	3. Revelations

**Chapter Three: Revelations**

We pulled out of the parking lot in silence. I could feel his penetrating stare, but refused to outwardly acknowledge it. I couldn't believe that I had let him in the car! Where had I gone wrong? I had been so adamant about staying away from him and in less than an hour since he reentered my life we were driving down the highway together. Well, I sure as hell wasn't going to be the person to break the silence. This was his party after all. I reached over to turn on the stereo, figuring that music would ease the tension, but Noah gently brushed my fingertips away before they even reached the dial.

"I know it's a little awkward, but just bear with me," he said, voicing my own thoughts exactly. I let out a short, bursting laugh which caused him to roll his eyes. "Alright, I'll answer any question that you have for me, any question at all." He waited for me to propose a topic of discussing.

I decided to start off easy. "How did you do that little trick in Euro class? I didn't know that Seraphim can cause hallucinations."

"It wasn't a hallucination. That would imply that your brain conjured the image with no visual stimulus whatsoever due to a malfunction with transmitters…"

"Why thank you Bill Nye…" he rolled his eyes, yet again.

"…I manipulated the light to produce the Cortexium frequency, which is a wavelength that does not actually exist. We can conjure up an image or idea and plant it into another's mind through the medium of light. The message is then decoded in the recipient's Cerebral Cortex, hence why Demetri christened this new discovery the Cortexium frequency. It's similar to radio waves except the technology method of broadcasting and receipting is bypassed," he explained.

"That seems far-fetched. You can do that all through light waves?" I asked skeptically.

"You'd be surprised how useful light really is. With our abilities, we discover new things all of the time. Okay, next question," he prompted.

I racked my brain for a second, looking for something trivial to ask. I wasn't really looking forward to discussing the kidnapping incident. "How did you get out of class?"

He gave me a stern look before answering. "I said that I was worried about you and wanted to make sure you didn't pass out in the hallway from heat stroke. And, of course, I knew that the Normandy Conquest occurred in the year 1066. Come on Phoenix. What kind of question was that? I know you can do better. I was expecting the Spanish Inquisition."

"Okay, riddle me this one, Riddler. Why did you come back?" I snapped. You could practically feel the venom coursing through my veins.

"That's what I'm talking about," he snickered, but then continued seriously. "I had this weird feeling that you were in danger. It wasn't very substantial. I mean, it was just making me a bit uneasy at first. I mention this to Genevieve and she advised me to follow my instincts. She and Demetri came down to Arizona with me and I think we may be on to something. There are huge electromagnetic disturbances in the general area…"

"What? I don't think so. My family has been monitoring for irregularities and we've found nothing," I interrupted.

"Really? Because we noticed disturbances right away," he contradicted. I was positively fuming by this point. He noticed and dropped the subject. "I decide to enroll in high school so that I could get a chance to talk to you. I knew I wouldn't be able to get anywhere close to the Faryn household. Your family practically has a bounty on my head."

"What do you think is creating those disturbances?" I asked.

"We're not sure. Seraphim don't pretend to be the best trackers in the world. That title goes to the Firebirds although I dare say you're slacking. You really haven't noticed the EMD?"

"No, I'll have to talk to my parents about it, but there hasn't been any strange activity or electromagnetic disturbances for the past month or so," I told him.

"Weird."

After a moment of silence, I continued with my next question. "Why did you kidnap me? And don't give me the whole story about the killer Egyptologist."

"It's not a story. I'll start from the beginning just so you understand our motivation behind the act. We were living just outside of Boston at the time. My brother Demetri had always been interested in Egyptian mythology and there hadn't been any major supernatural activity for a few weeks so we decided to take a vacation of sorts—for educational purposes, that is. Ancient Egyptians were the most astute civilization in the world. They were aware of an immense amount of strange creatures and even knew of their weaknesses. We figured it would be worthwhile to pay a visit to a few ancient temples. That's when we met Dr. Heinrich Tolzmann. He was meticulously pouring over an inscription concerning the healing powers of Firebird blood when we first met him. I knew there was something strange and dangerous about him the moment I saw him—a gut reaction. We conversed for a while and soon he warmed up to us. He told us in confidence that he had seen a really Benu, the Egyptian name for a Firebird, a few months before fighting with a huge monster that appeared from the sand. Of course we realized that there had been a serious sand beast infestation recently and the Ptolemy Clan had been unsuccessful with their attempts to kill the beasts. We knew that Karlstadt had been the one to destroy the creatures and therefore, must have also been the Firebird that this man had seen. This wouldn't have been all that important if this man wasn't quite so persistent. He eavesdropped on Karlstadt's conversation with the Ptolemy Clan. Apparently, they asked how you were doing—the youngest Firebird in the world, you're quite the topic for conversation. Like I said, he was already obsessed with Firebird mythology and this conversation reminded him of one of the Phoenician legends that promises everlasting life to the person who is able to kill the youngest Firebird. Apparently, the youngest phoenix is supposed to have an overabundance of the healing agent. It's a stupid and completely ridiculous myth. There's no way that this supposed unique quality would fade at the exact time of birth of a new Firebird. Complete rubbish! But this man was intent and believed in this lie adamantly. The inscription that we found him reading also contained instructions on how to drain the blood of a Firebird. We knew he was serious and he knew where to find you. We contacted your family right away, but they thought we were being idiotic and refused to believe that a human could kill a Firebird. By the time we reached Arizona, the Egyptologist was already plotting so we did the only thing we could think of—kidnapping you and bringing you to the safest place we knew of, which was our home. Once you were safe, we hunted down the crazy German, but he had noticed the subtle characteristics of Seraphim in us and was able to incapacitate us for quite awhile. Seraphim and Firebird myths are intertwined, we should have been prepared. It took us three months to finally kill him. He was by far the most annoying human I've ever met and possible the most troublesome creature I've ever fought," he explained.

I frowned in confusion. I'd also been under the assumption that Firebirds could not be killed by anything other than dark, dangerous creatures. "How was he going to kill me?"

Noah looked at his long, white hands that he was nervously fiddling with. "Firebirds draw their strength from their inner heat core. If that could be momentarily extinguished, then your blood would rush to re-ignite it. At that point, your skin could be pierced with an ivory stake, which is the substance that your blood will react slowest to and if your heat core was extinguished it would be completely ignored. You could bleed to death and the healing powers in your blood wouldn't even heal the wound it was flowing from. He knew ALL of this!" Noah looked like he was going to be sick. I was pretty sure that my face held the same expression.

"How would he have extinguished my heat core?" I asked in an even tone, trying to seem undisturbed by this information.

"The Ancient Egyptian method was drowning the Firebird. Oxygen is a necessity to the preservation of the heat core. Normally, a Firebird can survive three hours after losing consciousness underwater because the blood is still pumping," he answered solemnly. "But, Dr. Tolzmann planned to inject you with liquid nitrogen which would have been immediately effective. I'm not even sure if Firebird would be able to restart the heat core after such an injection regardless of the bloodletting."

I shuddered and let out a barely audible 'oh.' That did not sound pleasant. I tried to imagine the freezing liquid coursing through my system, cooling my warm blood. My hands tightened on the staring wheel.

"What did you do to him?" I asked, my voice hard with hatred.

"We were planning on taking him down easily with a few gamma rays, you know the usual, but he took us by surprise. Humans can't hurt Seraphim, but they can stop us from coming close to them by a rather simple mixture or sand, gun powder, and gold dust. Not many creatures know about this little defect, but this concoction messes with our ability to manipulate light waves. He threw the powder at us before we knew what was coming. Since light makes up a large part of our anatomy, we couldn't cross the curtain of powder that was suspended in thin air. He was always equipped with this infuriating mixture, but we caught him by surprised one night. Let's just say, once we were through with him there wasn't much left of his body. I supposed we were a little over zealous," he finished.

"Oh, not at all. I only wish you would have let me have a go at him," I snarled, my voice rich with vitriol.

He let out a low chuckle. "That would probably defeat the purpose of trying to protect you."

After a few seconds of silence in which I muttered incoherently to myself, Noah asked, "Umm…where exactly are we going?"

In my anger I had begun to zone and had aimless jumped on the highway and crossed over to the high speed lane. The connecting bridges crisscrossed like intricate spider webs, each with five lanes a piece. It was a miracle that I was able to blindly enter the high speed lane without causing a twenty car pileup and now, if I didn't want to end up stranded in the middle of the desert, I had to get off at the next exit. My body immediately tensed. Cars zoomed by, ignoring my directional. After squeezing into a much too small space between a Cadillac Deville and a Ford F150 , getting honked out about ten times, and almost getting rear ended, I was able to exit off the ramp and head back towards town. My mind was still in a fog from the unpleasant facts that had been revealed to me and now I was super wound up, my knuckles had turned white on the steering wheel. I glanced over a Noah to make sure that he was okay only to find him pursing his lips, trying to hold back a laugh. I narrowed me eyes. "If you were going to make fun of my driving skills, you shouldn't have come."

He finally lost his restraint and let out a low chuckle, snapping his hand over his mouth to stifle his bell-like laugh. "I'm sorry, but you should have seen your face. You looked like you had just realized that we were in the middle of a battlefield." Still shaking with laughter, he turned to look me in the eyes. "I'm impressed regardless. That was some very intense maneuvering."

I peeled my gaze away from his deep emerald eyes that were slowly turning silver with his excitement. My heart rate hadn't slowed down yet, which was odd because I normally recovered a lot quicker from these types of situations. I mean, it wasn't like I could have been killed even if there had been a twenty car pileup.

My phone vibrated.

"Oh, crap!!!" I shouted, making Noah immediate stop chortling.

"What?" he asked seriously, a crease forming in between eyebrows.

"Just don't say anything!" I order before sliding my phone open.

"Hey Helios. Sorry, I decided to take the detour," I lied swiftly.

"What detour? I'm a block from the school, there's only one way to get here!" he contradicted. Man, I hadn't thought that lie through. "Where are you now?"

"Umm…" involuntarily, I looked up at the street sign that I'd just passed and blurted it out. "Thunderbird Road." I seriously don't know how I could be so incompetent.

"Oh, _that _detour, right. The one that goes in the complete opposite direction!! Really smart, Phi!" he chided with a hint of amusement. He wouldn't be so amused when he found out who he I was with. "Are you at the Scottsdale or Glendale end?"

I wouldn't be so careless this time. "Glendale," I lied.

"Well, that's not that far from me. Do you mind picking me up, I don't feel like running," he said. Firebird blood is also incredible oxygenated which allows us to run at an accelerated rate. We don't get out of breath easily so we can sprint flat out for ten miles without passing out from oxygen deprivation.

"Actually, do you mind meeting me at the park, I don't want to have to double back in front of the school," I said, my voice cracking, giving away my lie.

"Nobody would recognize you from that far away, Phoenix! What the hell is going on?" he demanded nervously.

"Nothing, it just that…I feel guilty about ditching. I really don't want to get caught," I replied.

"Oh, I knew you were chicken," he said, his voice regaining the slight edge of amusement that it had once held.

"Yeah, you know me so well."

"Alright, I'll be there in ten," he said.

"Thanks, Lios. Love you."

"No problem," he said before hanging up.

"Well, that was smooth. Giving away our whereabouts, nice," Noah remarked.

"He caught me by surprise. It doesn't matter anyway. He believed the rest of my lie," I reminded him.

"That's true," Noah said, the corners of his lips twitching.

Through my peripheral vision, I could see a slight glow emanating from the passenger's seat. I let my gaze slip from the road to Noah's face. His stare was still boring into me, making me feel self-conscious and uncomfortable. There was no hiding the embarrassing blush that colored my cheeks an obnoxious rosy-red.

"Umm…I really should meet my brother before he finds us together and overreacts," I said, purposely avoiding eye contact.

"Yes, that would be very prudent. You can drop me off here," he said.

"Yeah, right. I'm not thrilled about the idea of dropping you off at your house, but the least I can do is bring you back to the school," I replied. Our little tête-à-tête had cleared the waters between us. I wasn't going to be throwing him a surprise birthday party anytime soon, but I also didn't want him to spend hours walking to his house either.

"That's very sweet of you, my dear. I'm positively glowing." His skin ignited filling the cab with a soft, silver haze.

"Don't push your luck. We can be civil towards one another, but I draw the line at the 'sweethearts' and 'my dears,' okay?" I snapped back. Just because I didn't hate him with every fiber of my being didn't mean that I would allow him to act all lovey-dovey on me in true Seraphim form. What was it with Seraphim and making people feel extremely awkward?

Noah let out a laugh. "I'm sorry. I'll try to behave myself. It may be extremely hard, especially when complimenting you is so easy, but I'll try." Awkward…I rolled my shoulders and clear my throat, staring straight at the car in front of me. "But, really, you can let me out here. I have a faster form of transportation," he said with a mischievous grin on his face.

"What, did you get a bus pass or something? Going Green?" I said with a smirk. He chuckled, shaking with the laughs that he was trying to force back into his body so as not to seem rude. Seraphim apparently don't understand the idea of sarcasm.

"Nope, my method doesn't leave any type of carbon foot print."

I played along. As much as I would have like to remain aloof and act cool, the curiosity was killing me. I pulled on to a deserted side of the road and turned toward Noah who was still trembling with laughter. "Okay, enlighten me because this is apparently your stop."

His only reply was to raise his index finger and point towards the sky, but that was enough.

"You're gonna FLY? I thought that was illegal or something, much too inconspicuous. Didn't they ban that during the 1700s?" I shouted incredulously.

"Yup, but we have a few new tricks up our sleeves that make those restrictions null and void," he countered.

"Oh, yeah? That's ridiculous!! There's no way that a six foot tall man with three pairs of wings flapping in thin air could _ever_ be inconspicuous!!" I screeched.

"Wanna bet?" A hint of wickedness crept into his glowing eyes.

"I can see the headlines know. _Freakish Angel Steals Harry Potter's Invisibility Cloak_," I chided.

"I'll take that as a yes. If I pull it off and don't get caught, the next time we meet you have to kiss me. No…you have to kiss me like you did in that hallucination this morning," he wagered.

"And if you lose, I want you to never talk to me useless I specifically ask you a direct question."

"Done." He extended his thin, white hand towards me, ready to shake on our bet.

"You have to become completely invisible. None of this, 'well no one happened to see a giant flying creature in the sky' stuff,'" I clarified.

"No problem," he said with an air of confidence that got me a little nervous. Could he seriously become completely invisible? This might be extremely unfortunate if he could…and extremely awkward.

Noah released me hand and stepped out onto the deserted dirt side road. He closed his eyes—the smile on his face growing larger by the second—and took a deep breath.

With a loud whoosh, three pairs of humongous, opaque wings sprung from Noah's back: one pair materializing between his shoulder blades angling upward, one pair jutting out his sides halfway down his back, and the last originating from the small of his back and angled downward, a mirror image of the first pair. I was expecting to see three large, bird-like feathery wings to grow out of his back, but his glossy, diaphanous appendages were breath taking. They glittered in the sun as if they were encrusted with jewels, reflecting the color spectrum back at me like a ridiculously enlarged prism.

He bent his legs, ready to spring into the air. His wings flexed in a synchronized swish and in one powerful stroke, sent him wheeling into the air. I blinked in amazement…and he had disappeared.


	4. One Crazy Skank

**Chapter Four: One Crazy Skank**

I'm sure that in any other circumstance the expression on my face would have been down-right hilarious. I was momentarily frozen in place, staring in the sky and desperately hoping that Noah would come back into my line of vision. It was no use. He had won the bet fair and square which was severely unfortunate on my part. I can't believe I agreed to perform sexual favors in the off chance that I would lose! What a stupid move! For the first time in my life, my face felt cool, as if all the heat carrying blood had drained from it. It was unnatural, uncomfortable, but allowed me to snap out of my grim daze. Shaking slightly, I crawled back to the driver's seat and clamped my seatbelt in place. Instead of thinking about the ridiculously stupid gamble I had just made, and lost, I concentrated on the chill coursing across my skin. In a matter of minutes, small flames rose from every inch of my body, just hot enough to warm the shiver that had come over me, but not hot enough to destroy any flammable material. I turned the key and my Firebird rumbled to life. This familiar sound comforted me and I was able to regain my composure.

It took me ten minutes to reach our normal meeting area in the Phoenix Mountains Park thanks to the array of short cuts that I had employed. Helios was impatiently pacing the length of the enclosed overhang created by volcanic activity thousands of years ago. Once he caught sight of the red glimmer of my car, he turned to face me wearing an inpatient expression. I decided to be honest with myself, because I obviously wasn't going to be honest with Helios, and prepared myself for yet another uncomfortable confrontation. Helios is not a fan of waiting, in facts he's not really a fan of anything that involves staying in one place for an extended period of time. You'd think that with more than a century and a half of life he would have gotten over his pet peeve, but that's another thing about Helios, he's pretty much unchangeable. No matter what "character developing experiences" he undergoes, he remains the same fun-loving, cocky, womanizer that he's always been. Don't get me wrong, he is a fairly polite person, but man does he like girls. Young, well endowed girls.

I open the car door and lithely strode toward him with a nervous fake smile on my face. I didn't know what I was going to talk to him about; he would definitely realize something was up even if he was naturally unobservant.

"Hey, Lios. Sorry I kept you waiting. I hit traffic," I lied.

"Yeah, it's normally grid locked at ten in the morning," he said catching me in another poorly planned fib. His eyebrows folded into a crease concentrated in the middle of his forehead. Okay, it wasn't that bad of a lie, was it? "Whose shirt's that?"

My heart stopped for a second and I could feel the heat draining, once more, from my face. I had completely forgotten that I was wearing Noah's shirt. Seriously, I was under the impression that I was slightly cleverer than this. Obviously, I was completely mistaken. I wouldn't have been able to fool a four year with this horrible planned sham. "Umm…I…well…err," I mutter incoherently, but to my surprise a knowing grin spread across Helios' face. For a second, I was afraid that he had figured everything out, but surely a scowl would be better fitting.

"Phi, you PLAY-UH!" he exclaimed. "Were you just hooking up with some guy? Is that why you're late? It's good to see you're following in my footsteps. I was beginning to worry that mom and dad had produced a do-gooder!" Leave it to Lios to attach the sluttiest scenario possible to any given situation, but he _had_ given me an easy out.

"Umm," I strategically pulsed inconspicuous flames across my cheeks which created the illusion of blushing. "I can't believe you figured it out so quickly. I'm soo embarrassed." I diverted my eyes to the ground and drew small circles in the sand with the tips of my toes.

Helios expelled a tremendous laugh and crossed the distance that separated us in one stride. He draped his arm around my shoulder and ruffled my hair with the other hand. "It truly makes me proud to be your older brother and mentor."

"Hardly my mentor, Lios. It seems somebody hasn't been monitoring the EMD properly," I said, skillfully changing the topic.

"What? I've been monitoring the EMD every day. Absolutely nothing's going on!" he said defensively.

"Doesn't that seem strange? Not even a small blimp of activity?" I questioned.

Intrigued, Helios relinquished his arm from my shoulder and shoved his hand into his pocket to retrieve the EMD tracker. The power light flickered weakly, but there was no faint hiss of static issuing from the speaker as was normal. Helios and I exchanged a perplexed look before he spun the dial, hoping for results. Dead silence.

"It was working perfectly fine last week," Helios said in his defense.

"I know. The batteries Karlstadt has charging it could power a third world country for centuries. How could the batteries already be dying?" I asked.

"Maybe something doesn't want to alert us to its presence," offered Lios.

I shrugged in agreement. If that was the case, however, we were dealing with a very clever and powerful creature.

"Or maybe the batteries weren't as powerful as Karlstadt thought," Lios added half-heartedly.

"That's highly unlikely."

"Well, it's ten o'clock on a Monday morning, you're supposed to be in school and nobody has any clue I'm gone. What do you say to hunting down some crazies?" Helios suggested with a grin.

I couldn't help but perk up at the mere thought of experimenting with me fire bending. Helios was the only firebird in a hundred mile radius that would ever let me walk blindly into danger. I loved it!

"Heck yeah!" I exclaimed. "First, we need to fix the EMD tracker which could be difficult. You don't happen to have a NASA certified battery pack in your pocket, do you?"

"Sorry, no."

"Yeah, didn't think so." I let out a weak chuckle. "We're not getting far if this thing is broken."

"Man, we're so pathetic. What would our forefathers think if they saw how dependent we are on technology," Helios laughed. "There has to be an easy solution." He threw me an expecting look.

I sighed. Of course it was my job to do the thinking, God forbid Helios come up with a plan. I stared off towards my car, the light glinting off the perfect hotrod red paint job. Then it hit me. "What about juicing it up with the Firebird's battery? It won't last long, but it'll probably give us at least twenty minutes."

Helios nodded his head. "It's a long shot, but what the hell. It's worth a try."

We both jogged over to my car, parked in the small amount of shade offered from a particularly large boulder. I popped the hood while Helios unlatched the trunk and pulled out a mechanical kit complete with wire strippers which were exactly what we needed. He pulled off the back cover of the EMD tracker while walking toward the front of the car. "Okay, this shouldn't be hard," he said with an air of confidence.

"Uh, I don't think so, Lios. There's no way in hell you're getting within a two foot radius of my car," I informed him, shoving him back a few paces. "Remember what you did to the Vette?"

"Do _you_ remember what I did to the Vette? You were like seven years old. Besides, it was severely in need of a tune up."

"I seem to recall the entire engine sprawled out in the garage with you unable to reassemble it. It was pure torture to see such a beautiful piece of machinery in such a sad state!" I cooed.

"Get over it. That thing runs like a charm now. It can top 130. There's no other 1964 Corvette that can compete with such speed," he countered while trying to move past the barrier that my outstretched arm had become.

"Only thanks to the mechanical genius of Karlstadt. Give me the EMD and stand over by that boulder…on second thought, go back to the cave. That should be a safe enough distance," I ordered. I grabbed the tracker from Helios' hand and pushed him towards the overhang. I was overreacting a bit but there were no lengths which I wouldn't go to in order to protect my Firebird.

Deftly, I cut the red and black wired that were tangled within the small tracking device and hooked my jumper cables to my car battery. I wanted to get as much juice as I could without rendering my car completely useless. Within a few seconds of tinkering, the red power light was glowing brightly on the face of the EMD and a high pitched wail was issuing from the speaker, audible over the rumble of me car engine.

"What the HELL is causing that EMD!" shouts Helios from underneath the outcropping.

"Something wicked powerful and fairly close by," I answered. "We are going to have some fun with this beast."

Lios' eyes lit up and a smile appeared on his face. "That's what I'm talkin' about!" he exclaimed and her ran towards my car.

The static zipping of the EMD reached its pinnacle as we drove be a deserted lot in the middle of the city. A chain linked fence enclosed a dilapidated office building, crumbling down to the foundation through years of neglect. I parked me car in front of the drive. We were the only people in this ally. I had no worries about congesting the flow of traffic.

"Well, this is a little creepy. Do you think it's a drac?" Helios asked as we both quietly snuck out of the cab.

"A drac with this strong of an EMD? I don't think so. Even poltergeists don't expel this much energy," I reminded him.

He nodded in agreement. We crept closer and claustrophobia set in. I hate the feeling of being caged. The EMD released an ear-splitting wail that made us cover our ears in defense.

Movement in the corner of the lot caused me to spin around, dropping the EMD in the process.

"Whoa-o," Helios interjects. A gorgeous woman barely in her twenties stood in shadows, her pale skin iridescent even in the shade. A curtain of thick black hair fell to her shoulders, perfectly contrasting with the blood red knee-length gown she was wearing. Wicked shady in my opinion…but, not in Helios'.

"Helios, behave yourself. She's either a prostitute or a banshee," I warn him.

"No way. She's too beautiful to be either," he countered, drool practically pooling at his feet. "Hi, sorry to startle you. Can we help you in anyway?"

Startle her? She was definitely not startled. There was a malicious smirk forming at the corners of her mouth. Why, oh why did my brother have to be such a pig? "Hey, Casanova, ever think that she's the one who's causing the EMD?" I ask.

"I don't care, she's hot!" I rolled my eyes at his answer. By the time my eyes relocated the hooker, she had completely morphed into a hideous, scaly monster.

"Oh, yeah real beautiful!" I shouted as she lounged towards us.

A glass-shattering noise resonated from her mouth, crippling both me and Helios. I suctioned me hands over my ears and dropped into the fetal position, unable to move. What in God's name was this creature?

A slender, blackened hand grabbed a hold of my shoulder, its claws digging deep through the flesh. I let out a short, barking cry of pain before grasping onto the scaly arm and burning it with all the heat I could muster. The creature yelped in agony, disrupting the high-pitched frequency that she had been expelling. In this moment of weakness, Lios jumped up and grabbed the creature by the throat searing her windpipes closed and engulfing her already deformed, mutated face in flames.

I expected her to give up at that point seeing as though she was practically burning a live, but nope. She was a fighter; just our luck! She sent one powerful blow into Lios' chest, taking him by surprise, and sending him wheeling into the remains of the concert building which crashed down upon him. After a few hacking retches, she turned towards me. I readied myself for an attack, but inside of charging toward me, she lifted her talon adorned hand and sent a large chuck of cement wall in my direction. I sent up a searing hot wall of flames which incinerated the cement into dust, but it had served its purpose. By the time I spun around to face the beast head on, she had dissipated into black, smoky vapors that disperse into the atmosphere within seconds. "Damn it!" I shouted.

"Where did she go?" Helios yelled as he disinterred himself from the concrete tomb.

"Disappeared. We definitely underestimated her!"

"So she has the ability to change into a smoking hot vixen, has a set of crazy powerful windpipes…"

"And has telepathy. She sent a piece of the wall gunning for me with just a flick of her hand," I added.

"Sounds like a sylph. I've never actually seen one until now, but it makes sense. They're extremely powerful, we probably shouldn't have come here by ourselves, but man what a rush!! Dude, she was soo hot!"

"Are you serious? She just tried to kill us not to mention what an ugly beast she really was! You have some issues that need sorting out," I screamed. He was completely deranged!

"I can't help it, Phi. Pretty women are like Kryptonite to me!" he explained.

I rolled my eyes and walked back to the car. We could have easily been killed by such a powerful creature, but still I was trying to suppress a chuckle at how easy a pretty face could win over my brother.

We waited until three o'clock to come home. That way I could still pretend that I was at school all day and the sylph attack happened afterwards. I rolled into the garage parking in between my brother's metallic orange Corvette and my parent custom gold Jaguar XK.

We entered through the backdoor which opened into the spotless, white kitchen. My mother was stirring a large caldron, heated by the flames expelling through her left hand. She looked up as we enter and smiled. "Helios, I swear we have to put a cowbell on you. I could have sworn you were in your room all day." She glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. "Why are you so late?"

I looked at Helios. He was the better fabricator. "Where are the Elders?" he asked.

"In the living room with your father. What's the matter?" My mother's voice was thick with worry.

"I'll tell you in a second. Come on." We filed into the living room where the three elders and my father were poured over a book that had seen far better days hundreds of years ago. They looked up curiously and gave all their attention to Helios when they realized there was something important to be said. "We have a bit of a problem," he started. "I went to meet Phi after school to see how her day went. I thought maybe we could do something fun. I know how boring high school can be. When I got in the car, the EMD slipped out of my pocket and we noticed that there was a very weak signal, almost as though the batteries were dying. I thought to myself, Karlstadt's technology could fuel a third world country for centuries…" I rolled my eyes as he credited himself with my words. "…some powerful creature must be behind this. We decided to try jumpstarting the EMD tracker using the car battery which worked extremely well and almost immediately led us to the culprit. It's a sylph!" he said the last sentence with an air of mystique for effect.

There was a collective intact of breath. Sylphs were apparently more dangerous than I had realized.

"That was very irresponsible of you two. Running blindly into such a dangerous situation!" yelled my grandmother.

"We had it under control," I argued.

"I'm sure you did, Phoenix, but regardless, this situation should not be taken lightly," Karlstadt admonished. I couldn't help but hang my head in shame. Karlstadt had that effect on people. Nobody ever wanted to disappoint him.

"Why don't you go upstairs while we sort this matter out," my grandfather said. I quickly agreed, knowing that a lot of screaming would soon ensue. Most of it would be aimed at my "irresponsible" older brother. As I passed him on my way to the staircase he sarcastically muttered, "Thanks for the support, Phi." I smiled slyly. This was payback for being such a hound dog.

I snatched my iPod up from my bureau and jammed the headphones into my ears, cranking up the loud rock music until I could barely hear the raging argument downstairs. The bickering was _almost_ drowned out. I decided that I should try to get some reading in while I had time to kill, who knew how prolonged this whole sylph situation was going to be. Or how time consuming avoiding Noah Wilder at all costs could be? Wow, I had had almost forgotten about that.

I sighed and snatched up a book that Karlstadt had lent me on the proper form to Phoenix transformation. Not that knowing the theory behind transformation would in any way help me to pull the actually act off, but it was still worth a shot. Plopping myself stomach down on my bed, I leafed through the pages looking at the diagrams and pictures, my feet bobbing in the air behind me.

After about twenty minutes of aimlessly flipping through the book, I felt my bed sink under added weight and my headphones were yanked from my ears.

"You know, I really don't approve of you ditching class," Maddie said a stern expression crossing her face. "You really could get in a bunch of trouble."  
I grinned and turned off my iPod. Madeline always came and went from my house whenever she pleased. Judging from the raised voices still issuing from the living room, the elders hadn't even bothered to suspend their argument out of courtesy. Madeline was a fixture in this house and was never treated like a guest. She was family. "I'll survive, Mad. I had more important things to do."

"So important that they couldn't wait for the end of the school day?" she asked skeptically and she reclined to mirror my position on the bed.

"Umm…Yeah, pretty much," I answered.

I noticed the corners of her lips twitch. "Well, no worries. I brought over your homework. It's downstairs on the kitchen counter. So what are the grandparents fighting about? It was pretty intense!"

"There are some disturbances in the electromagnetic field that Noah had told me about, so Lios and I checked up on it. It turned out to be a sylph which is an extremely dangerous creature. We barely got out of there alive," I explained.

"What!" Her shout made me jump, but she ignored my reaction and instead grabbed my shoulders. "_Noah _told you this? _Noah_, as in hot kidnapper?"

I couldn't help the small grin that crept across my face. She completely ignored the more pressing matter of impending doom and focused on possible love connections. Gotta love Maddie. "Yes," I answered tersely. She would not be satisfied with this one word reply. She was far too insightful and would most definitely put two and two together.

"This doesn't by any chance, have anything to do with your disappearance act this afternoon?" she asked suspiciously, hitting the target precisely.

"Ummm…yes…" I didn't have a chance to explain before Maddie irrupted with a loud giddy scream.

"No way, no way! Oh, my God, Phi. I knew you were totally into him! Of course this doesn't take away from the fact that you bunked school, but…Oh, my God!!!" she screeched as she bounced around on the bed, hugging me.

"I do NOT like him!" I corrected her. "I just understand him now."

"Which means you like him!"

"No, it just means I won't beat him up." Maddie's eyebrow rose skeptically into her eyebrows.

"Yeah, right. So you're telling me that his beautiful body and curly blonde hair have no influence whatsoever over you?" she asked.

My thoughts flashed back to the vision Noah had planted in my head; the one with us in a major lip lock. Madeline registered my hesitation and let out another screech of excitement. "You can't get anything past me, Phoenix! What do you _really_ think of Noah? Have you gotten over the whole kidnapping issue?"

I let out a resigned sigh knowing that Maddie would never stop until she knew all. In truth, I kind of wanted to talk to her about it. She was the best advice giver in the world. "Well, at first I really did hate him, or at least I thought I did. That was mostly because my parents despised his family for kidnapping me, but he told me his side of the story," I recapped the entire car ride for her benefit and informed her of embarrassing Euro class incident.


	5. XY Chromosome Blues

**Chapter Five: XY Chromosome Blues**

"And he disappeared completely?" she asked in awe.

"Yup. I can't believe that he pulled that one off," I said, a hint of disappointment in my voice.

"Oh, come on. He had just told you that he could manipulate wave frequencies. It wouldn't be too hard for him to reflect the entire spectrum back and appear to be invisible. Wanna know what I think?"

"I sure you'll tell me regardless."

"I think that you secretly want to make out with him for real. From your description of that make believe kiss, you were pretty into it. Your subconscious is obviously trying to send you a message. Hint, hint: you really, really like him," she informed me.

"That's preposterous! I'm being one hundred percent truthful right now. I don't like him like that, but maybe I enjoyed the kiss a little more than I should've…"

Maddie threw her arms around me and shouted, "I knew it!"

"I only meant that it wasn't a real kiss. I'm in a bad place right now, Mad. If I even allow myself to talk to him again, my family might kill him!" I reasoned.

She nodded wisely. "I see your point. You did lose that bet fair and square though, Phi, you have to make good on your end of the deal. I'm sure you'll enjoy that payment just as much as he will."

"I don't want to, though! I feel like I'm betraying my family! And I lied to Helios! That makes me feel like scum. He's so trusting and sort of oblivious. I can't believe I took advantage of that!" I confessed and nuzzled my head into her shoulder. She pulled her fingers gently through my curls.

"It's not really your fault that Helios is so unaware of anything that doesn't concern whores in miniskirts. If you're really so uncomfortable with the idea of kissing Noah then maybe you should confront him. Tell him that you can't really have any type of relationship due to the circumstances. Tell him what you just told me," she comforted.

I nodded, my head still resting in her arms.

"But you'd be all over that if he wasn't a sworn enemy!"

I ripped my head from her hold and playful nudged her in the shoulder. "Maddie, really, that's not even true. His imaginary projection of himself is an OK kisser but beyond that…"

"Fine, fine. I'll let it drop," she laughed.

A knock on my door silenced our laughter. Not waiting for a reply, Helios walked in and plopped himself down on the foot of the bed wearing a strained expression which was very rare for my easygoing brother.

"Mom and dad are so pissed at us and Karlstadt's doing that whole 'I'm so very understanding' bit that makes everyone feel so much worse," he explained.

"Oh no, what did they say?" I asked.

"The usual. _You're supposed to be the responsible one. You both could have died_. I'm pretty sure we're not gonna be allowed to go on a raid for another century."

"Oh well, I probably wasn't gonna be invited on any interesting raids for another hundred years anyway," I said, subdued.

Maddie inclined her head and whispered, "What's going on," as if it we were being monitored.

"I told you. We tracked down this creature and it turned out to be a sylph." I answer back.

"WHAT?! You never told me this!! Are you guys okay?" she demanded frantically. I laughed quietly. Maddie had extremely selective hearing.

"Yeah, we're fine. That is, unless the Elders decide to crucify us for acting so impulsively," I told her.

"What's a sylph? Could you have been killed?" Her hysterical tone had not disappeared.

"There these spirits that can take on the form of beautiful women and have reel high-pitched wails that can deafen anyone within a mile radius. They also have the power of telepathy," I informed her.

"You two are ridiculous! How do you manage to put yourselves in such dangerous situations? You could have died! And you're virtually indestructible! I can't believe you guys!!!!!!" She wailed.

"Calm down, Maddie. We handled ourselves just fine," Lios said.

"Like I'll believe anything you say, you egotistical maniac." She glanced at me for reassurance, knowing that I would tell her the truth.

I cringed, giving away Lios' distortion of facts. "Well, she _was_ pretty creepy, like Michael Jackson scary with all his _Thriller _zombie powers."

"Why would you every go after something that can be compared to a child molesting pop star?" she screeched.

"We didn't know what it was at first," Helios told her.

"Oh, so you just showed up and thought, 'hey, it might be fun to die today?"

"Not exactly. What happened to the 'live fast, die young' motto that you were preaching this morning?" I countered.

"I only meant that you should stop reading such depressing stories, not that you should actually try to die young!!" she shouted.

"This is Phoenix we're talking about, Maddie. She actually finds it fascinating when thousands of people die in one punch," Helios joked.

"Excuse me, but I'm not a sociopath! I just like to stay updated on world events. Doesn't anybody besides me find earthquake's in Tucson strange?" I snapped before gasping in amazement. My hand shot up to cover my mouth, as though this act would barricade the incoherent flow of words that were threatening to burst forth. Helios and Maddie exchanged bewildered expressions before looking to me for an explanation.

"Earthquakes in Tucson!!" I shouted as if they should have put two and two together. "Lios, that sylph we fought today could have easily taken down a whole city block with just her voice! I think we're dealing with an infestation further south."

"What does that mean?" Maddie asked, not sure of the specific firebird protocol.

"It means that we're gonna have a hell of a time in Tucson! The Elders can possibly exclude us from this one. They'll need all the help they can get," Lios said while hopping up from the bed. "I'll try to soften them up to the idea."

"Yeah, right. They might let you go, but definitely not me!"

"Don't worry about it," he said with a wink.

"Oh, jeez. What half-baked scheme have you cooked up this time?" Maddie asked a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Improvising," he said tersely and threw her a smile. Maddie and I rolled our eyes in unison.

"Give me twenty minutes and I bet that I can get the Elders to include me and Phoenix in this raid," Lios wagered.

"I think that Phoenix has had here fair share of gambling for today." I quickly elbowed Maddie for even so much as alluding to my encounter with Noah earlier this morning. Luckily, my cell phone rang before Lios could call me out on this vague statement.

"Twenty minutes," he reminded. I wasn't sure what the stakes were, but Helios was apt to propose them when he was sure that he would win. "It's probably your pimp. You shouldn't leave him waiting. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"Helios, just leave already!" I shouted just as he slammed the door closed.

"Who is it?" Madeline asked, drawing my attention back to the vibrating phone perched on my night stand. I snatched it up and glanced at the caller ID. "Its and unknown caller," I told her before flipping the phone open.

"Hello?" I asked, not knowing who to expect, but seriously hoping that it wasn't Noah. Or maybe the clenching sensation in my stomach meant that I was secretly hoping it _was _Noah.

"Phoenix?" a nervous voice asked.

"Yes, who is this?" It definitely wasn't Noah. It was impossible for his crystal clear voice to crack as this boy's did.

"It's Cayden Maloire. I know that I probably should have waited three days before calling you back—isn't that some sort of unspoken rule?—but I had to call as soon as possible while I still have the nerve," the boy rambled. "I was wondering if you would really be interested in going out with me Friday night or if you only gave me your number because you felt sorry for me. It's okay if you don't want to, I mean I could hardly read your hand writing so I didn't know if you were trying to let me down easy or just had horrible penmanship…"

Maddie was beginning to sign elaborate messages to me and seeing as though it was her fault that he was even calling me, I threw her an insidious glare and mouthed the words, "Cayden Maloire." That was all it took to send Maddie keeling off the bed in fits of laughter. I rolled my eyes and try to jump back into the one sided conversation; my absence hadn't been missed.

"…I know that you probably get asked out a lot and you most likely have plans Friday, but in the off chance that you don't I know this really nice restaurant we could go to. I could pick you up at seven…or whatever time's good for you…well you really haven't agreed yet so I shouldn't make the plans yet…umm…" he trailed off waiting for my reply.

I was a deer in the headlights of a speeding car. "Ummm…yeah that would be cool," I said before I realized that I had just agreed to go on a date with him. What was it about Cayden that made it impossible to reject him? First with giving him my number, now with this long-winded phone call…was I losing my hard edge?

"OH, GREAT!" he shouted. "How does Friday at seven sound?"

"Fine. It sounds fine," I muttered into the receiver, still shocked.

"Amazing! Thanks Phoenix. I'll see you in school tomorrow."

"Yup, tomorrow…" I was even more incoherent than Cayden had been.

"'Night," the line cut out with a soft click and my attentions were diverted back to Maddie who was rolling around on the ground, tears streaming from her eyes.

"You better watch your back, Madeline Masen," I threatened, allowing visible licks of flames to creep up my arms. Maddie ignored my empty threat, her laughter escalating which each passing second.

The sun poured in through my east facing picture window, acting as a natural alarm clock. Maddie's arm had somehow ended up across my face so I gently shook it off and crawled out of bed. It was commonplace for Madeline to sleepover anywhere from three to five times a week. She hated staying at her house especially when her parents were away on business. I didn't blame her. Who wants to be alone in a large, genetically designed house? Definitely not me; it would be way too boring not to mention mildly creepy.

I shuffled through my closet and extracted a purple and green plaid skirt which I matched with a lacey snow white tank top. I quickly changed and slid into a pair of simple leather sandals and then obnoxiously leaped back on to the bed. The tremors caused Madeline to wake with a start.

"Jeez, Phi. Do you really have to do that every single time I sleepover? Does it ever get old?" she muttered, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Nope, not really. Besides, you're such a heavy sleeper that no amount of wake up calls would work."

"That's true," she said with a shrug, tossing the sheets to the side and climbing out of bed. "Hey, so what are you gonna wear for your date Friday?" she instigated.

I lobbed a pillow at her head. "Shut up and don't mention this to the parental units, okay?"

"Can I come over before? I have to see this!" she screeched.

"Yeah, that's all I need. You and Lios pressing your faces against the front window to witness my embarrassment. I don't think so!" I retorted, but then offered her a warm smile. "Maybe I'll streamline it to you."

"Oh, thanks for the consideration," Maddie snorted before turning her attentions to my overflowing bureau. "Can I borrow your sequin top?"

Thirty minutes later we were rolling into my designated spot in the senior lot. A swarm of students congregated on the stairs in front of the entrance to the school. While Maddie was reaching into the backseat to retrieve her tote bag, I snuck a glance into the crowd, hoping to catch a glimpse of Noah. I wasn't sure if I was trying to locate his position so that I could avoid him or so I could confront and subsequently make out within him.

"Don't think I don't see you scanning the entire student body for Flyboy," Maddie chided, half of her body still hidden from sight. She had come up with the nickname Flyboy last night in between making fun of my mortifying arrangement with Noah and my equally awkward exchange with Cayden. She insisted that Noah was the blond version of James Franco and found it so very convenient that Noah's mystical abilities could be related to a WWI air force movie.

"You don't see me scanning the crowd because it's all in your head," I lied. "Where the hell did you put your bag? My car is only so big!"

"I think my camera rolled under the front seat. I can't reach it," her muffled voiced call from behind the passenger's seat. I grabbed her legs and shoved the rest of her body into the backseat. She let out a small yelp of shock before resurfacing a couple of seconds later clutching her bulky black camera, a triumphant smile on her face. She accidentally snapped a picture of herself as she struggled to regain an upright position.

"Found it!" Her eyes diverted to the window and I reflexively looked over my shoulder. "I guess you don't have to search the crowd anymore."

Noah stood outside my car, a slightly bemused expression causing his pale face to radiate. When I made eye contact with him, he smiled and beckoned me to come and join him.

"Maddie, do NOT leave my side. I repeat DO NOT leave him any opportunity to make good on his offer," I hissed.

"I can hear absolutely everything your saying right now, Phoenix. Your windows aren't soundproof," Noah said with a sly grin. Shit! I smiled innocently and grasped Madeline's wrist, yanking her back into the front seat.

"Be strong, PhiPhi. We all do stupid things in our lives. Normally, your degree of stupidity is accompanied with a drunken rave, but hey we can't all be rock stars," she joked as she opened the door, forcing me to follow suit.

"Hey, Noah. Let me just tell you how impressed I am with your serious supernatural skills! Big fan…oh, is that Cliff? Sorry, Phi, I gotta go. Cliff and I have to develop our yearbook pictures before school starts." She was such a liar. I glared at her incredulously. She was purposely throwing me into the lion's den with some lame, half-backed story! And to think that I let her borrow my sequin top this morning! She gave me a sheepish smile that was supposed to be comforting, but was too laden with fear to actually succeed in its intended purpose. I could only assume that she was worried that I melt her roll of film which she clutched protectively to her chest. She waves goodbye to Noah before screaming Cliff's name at the top of her lungs and jogging over to the crowd of wrestling jocks clustered around him.

"Wow, your friend seriously left you hanging. She needs to take a refresher class in wing-woman 101," Noah commented. I timidly laughed and looked at the ground, much too afraid to make eye contact. "Look, Phoenix, I can see that our little deal yesterday morning makes you very uncomfortable. I'm not going to ask you to do anything you don't want to do. That's not the point in my being here. I want to protect you from anything supernatural and otherwise that threatens your well being. That includes me, if I'm acting too forward. I'm sorry. You don't have to kiss me," he reached down and placed his long, thin fingers on my chin, tilting it up so that I was forced to look him in the eyes. His green orbs were a tempest of concern and sincerity with undercurrents of silver light materializing as a symbol of his pure intentions towards me. I was lost for words. "What no snappy comeback?" he asked as though he was reading my mind.

I racked my brain for something witty to say. "I don't you to protect me. If I recall, I was the one who burned your angel ass yesterday in this very spot." It was a mediocre attempt at best, but it caused Noah to burst out in a robust chuckle, his hand sliding down to my neck.

"I'll pay the price of a few third degree burns any day if it means having a few seconds of physical contact with you," he jokes, twirling a strand of my hair at the base of my neck.

"I think we're in for a little déjà vu in T-minus three seconds," I told him, but he didn't stop. Truthfully, this was kind of sexy but it was seriously clashing with my "avoid Noah or risk starting civil strife between my family and his" agenda.

"No amount of physical damage would keep me away from you, Phoenix. Nothing," he whispered into my ear, his face just inches away from mine. "Let me just say sorry for what I'm about to do." He nuzzled my ear and ran his lips softly over my cheek, slowly edging towards my mouth. But, before he made it all the way to my trembling lips, he stopped to gauge my reaction. I'm sure I looked like the biggest prude ever! I guess all the slutty genes went to Helios. A huge, amused smile spread across his perfect face as he angled his head back toward me.

I not going to pretend that I didn't want him to kiss me, on the contrary, I was all for it at this point, but I was desperately hoping for a distraction that would save me from the lip lock. It still felt like a major betrayal of my family's trust even stand next to him.

"Phoenix! Hey," shouted an excited voice behind me. I spun around to see Cayden Maloire waving vigorously in my direction. I smiled. He had just provided me with the perfect distraction. I tried to force the nagging disappointment of having been interrupted in mid-kiss into the back of my mind, an emotion that was so contradictory to what I should be feeling.

"Hey, Cayden. How are you?" I said enthusiastically.

"Good, really good. This is for you, I thought you might need an early morning caffeine pick-me-up." He handed over a venti sized Starbucks coffee which I accepted graciously. Dude, this kid was ridiculously nice.

"Oh, wow. Thanks so much!" I glanced to my side; Noah's radiant glow had completely dissipated, leaving behind only a sour expression. "Umm…this is Noah Wilder; he's an old friend, but new to the school. Noah, this is Cayden Maloire," I introduced the two boys. Noah extended his hand without much conviction, but Cayden looked completely surprised, as though he hadn't even noticed Noah's presence. How could somebody possibly overlook such a beautiful creature was beyond me.

"Nice to meet you," Cayden chirped with an eager smile. Noah nodded, and quickly looked away.

This was proving to be an insanely awkward exchange. Noah was completely uninterested in meeting a 'lowly human' and Cayden was just completely oblivious to the fact that Noah was so uninterested. If I had my wing-women by my side, I could easily defuse the awkward silence that followed. Maybe if I hadn't been abandoned it may have stopped Cayden from having the chance to mention our date in front of Noah. Curse you, Maddie!!

"So, Phoenix, I'm so excited for our date on Friday. You're seriously gonna have a blast!"

I glanced over to see Noah's nostrils flaring and his eyes livid with anger. He probably hated me now for leading him on. I hung my head in shame and replied with a muttered, "I'm sure I will."

The bell rang loud and clear, allowing me a chance to escape. The rest of the student population remained stationary, paying no attention to the annoying buzz that was meant to send them running to their classes. I, however, was completely grateful for that annoying, mechanical drone. "Oh, that's the bell. I'll see you guys later," I mumbled as I sped away, not waiting for an acknowledgement from either boy.

4


	6. Confrontations

**Chapter Six: Confrontations**

I spent the first two periods of the day in a petrified daze, barely registering my surroundings. All I could do was replay my morning encounter with Noah and Cayden, trying to break down their every move so as to understand what each boy was thinking at the time. It was futile. I couldn't even begin to fathom what Noah what feeling and I wasn't sure if Cayden was naturally cheerful or if that was a mask for some other emotion. Then I realized that I wasn't really in a relationship with either of the boys and it shouldn't matter. But it did.

When third period rolled around, I stormed off to AP Biology with a vengeance.

"Hey Judas, gonna turn me over to the Romans again?" I hissed as I walked into the biology lab. Maddie glanced up from the textbook she was pouring over and smirked.

"Oh, comparing yourself to Jesus now? I think you have some serious ego issues."

I ignored her. "Why did you throw me into the lion pit, Mad? That was severely uncool!"

"Again with the religious allusions. If you're in the same league as Jesus and Daniel maybe you should take a page out of their book—that would be the Bible—and forgive me. I just didn't want to be the third wheel in your awkward little immortal love connection," Maddie joked.

I throw myself onto the lab stool and glared at her. "Guess who showed up after you left me hanging. Cayden Maloire, three seconds before Noah was about to kiss me! It was horrible. He bought me a coffee and everything. It was really sweet, but that sweetness was mired by the fact that he brought up our date in front of Noah. Now, if my wing-woman was doing her job that would have never happened!! I swear, Noah is probably doing some angel voodoo on me right now for being such an obnoxious tease!" I ranted.

"Phoenix, somehow I don't see that happening. For one thing, I doubt that voodoo is in Flyboy's arsenal of weaponry. Secondly, there is no way in hell anybody would call you a tease. Seriously, before this week I was questioning your sexuality," I shot her a horrible leer, which she countered with a smug shake of her head. "Just kidding, you really have to calm down. Anyways, he probably is more jealous than he is mad. I bet he's angrier at Cayden than he is at you," Maddie reasoned.

I felt my brow contract in confusion. "I don't think so. You should have seen him, Mad. He was practically in overcast; there was absolutely no light radiating from him."

"Jealousy! He is so jealous. If I were you I would use this to your advantage, let him know that you have other options. Of course, you have to be fair to Cayden too. Don't lead him on or anything. As funny as I think you're magical Friday night date is going to be, I would seriously consider letting him down easy," Maddie suggested.

I blinked a few times as this registered. "No, I can't do that."

Madeline eyed me suspiciously. "Why not?"

I shook my head, not wanting to continue this conversation in the middle of bio.

"Oh, hell no! You're not getting off that easy, Phoenix Faryn!" she shouted in as loud a voice she could without drawing the class's attention to our conversation. She resumed in a whisper, "Do you like Cayden, too?"

I pretended as though I hadn't heard her. Mrs. Jamison, the Biology teacher, started class before Maddie had a chance to yell at me again, but she had other ways of getting to the bottom of things.

Thirty-seconds into the lesson, Maddie reamed me in the head with a crumpled up piece of notebook paper. Mrs. Jamison's back was turned, allowing me a chance to smooth out the note without being caught:

_**Is it Noah or Cayden because I'm getting more mixed signals than a radio in the middle of the desert right now? First you don't want to kiss Noah than you're about to kiss him, but Cayden shows up bearing gifts. You're going on a date with him because you couldn't find it in your heart to say no, but now you may be harboring romantic feelings for him too? Take about soap opera!**_

How Madeline managed to scribble this entire monologue down in less than thirty seconds was beyond me, but man she had skill. I took out my pen and scribbled a response.

_**I was trying to tell Noah that we couldn't see each other again and he was being really supportive about it too. He could tell that I was uncomfortable with the idea of kissing him, but we were sort of flirting and then the next thing we knew we were about to make-out. **_

_**It's different with Cayden. I don't like him like that, or at least I don't think so, but there's something about him that makes me want to smile. I can't say no to him, as you've already seen. **_

When Mrs. Jamison stooped down to pick up a piece of chalk that had fallen on the floor, I hummed the paper at Maddie, hitting her in the eye. Pay backs a bitch, suckah! She rolled her eyes at me as I flashed a triumphant smile and read my note. She began to write again.

_**So you are totally macking on Noah, which I don't blame you for, he is amazingly gorgeous, but have we forgotten about the kidnapping incident. You're not holding a grudge against him anymore?**_

I had to think about this question before I replied.

_**No, I understand where he's coming from now. It's in his nature to want to protect whoever needs protecting. He was just trying to do a good deed. Obviously, he could have handled the situation a little better, but regardless, he was just trying to save my life. Truthfully, I don't remember much from that escapade, just that Noah and his family were really nice to me. I think my parents brainwashed me into hating Seraphim afterwards. **_

Maddie nodded her head as if she understood my reasoning. This was reassuring because I wasn't even sure if I understood what the hell I was talking about. She scribbled down another few sentences before shoving the note into my outstretched hand while the teacher was blowing her nose. It was lucky for us that Mrs. Jamison had the attention span of a squirrel. It stopped her from noticing our little exchange. I read Maddie's letter:

_**Okay, so you've forgive your enemy, how gracious of you, and I'm not being sarcastic for once. The Cayden thing is a little weird though. There's obviously no question of canceling the date now that, and I quote, "I can't say no to him." You'd better bring a condom, dearest. **_

I punch Madeline in the arm while our teacher choked on the water she had just swigged from a Poland Springs bottle. Well, my grand plan to snub Madeline for the rest of existence fizzled within ten minutes of actually being around her. Wow, I was turning into such a pushover.

****

I was expecting history class with Noah to be extremely awkward, but I wasn't prepared for it to be so unbearable.

"Ahh, Miss Faryn, are we feeling better?" asked Mr. Larken.

"Yup, it was a freak fever. No idea where it came from," I answered before scurrying to my seat in back of Noah. Like the coward I am, I kept my eyes on the ground and saw nothing more than his feet. Even so, I could tell that Noah was not in a good mood. I wasn't the only one either. Jill Cartwright, the girl who had been pathetically staring at Noah's radiant beauty yesterday, kept shooting him concerned and uncomfortable looks.

"How's your boyfriend?" Noah muttered under his breath, just loud enough so only I could hear him.

"He's not my boyfriend!" I hissed sounding more like a twelve year old than I would have liked to.

"Oh, so you just get around a lot then," he stated harshly.

"Oh, yes. I'm a grade-A slut," I retorted with venom dripping from my words. He had no right to pretty much call me a whore!

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" he murmured while Mr. Larken started the day's lesson.

"Really, because that's exactly how it sounded like to me! Please enlighten me on the workings of Noah Wilder's mind," I whisper bitingly.

"Phoenix, I really…I can't explain it in subdued whispers during Euro class. Pretend to faint," he ordered.

"What?" I asked, thoroughly confused.

"Raise your body temperature and fall out of your chair. Faint!" he clarified, harboring quite the attitude.

I rolled my eyes, but complied. Fluttering my eyelashes and expelling a tremendous sigh, I threw myself on the floor in true Hollywood style. I decided that 108oF would be a sufficient temperature.

"Oh, my God!!! Mr. Larken, she needs to go to the nurse," shouted Noah with unwaveringly conviction. I thought I recognized a hint of amusements in his voice, but I realized how pathetically aware of him that would make me and decided that it was in my imagination. A cool hand grazed my forehead, pushing back a few stray hairs. "She's burning up!!!"

"Oh, dear! Oh, dear! I'll call the nurse for assistance!" Mr. Larken's nervous squeal was making me feel extremely guilty for being so deceitful towards him.

"No. I can bring her. It'll save time," Noah suggested, effortlessly scooping me up from the ground and striding towards the door.

"Oh, that's a good idea…" the slamming door cutting Mr. Larken's sentence short.

Cued by the crash of the shutting door, my eyes flew open. "Put me down," I demanded. I could tell that Noah was about to comply, but he wasn't complying fast enough. I admit that it was totally bitchy, but I burned him with strategically placed flames.

"Owww! Phoenix, I was going to let you down! What did you do that for?" he yelped.

"That was for calling me a whore!" I snarled.

"I did NOT call you a whore! You're insufferable!" he shouted, throwing his hands in the air out of exasperation.

"Then why did you both coming to Arizona? It's not like you were obligated!!"

"You don't get it, do you?!!! For the last thirteen years, I've been trying to find any excuse possible to come and see you again. You have me under a spell that I can't break free of, as spell you cast over me when you were five!" he exclaimed.

"How does that sound normal to you?" I questioned. His logic was ridiculous not to mention a little weird.

"Phoenix, the boundaries of reality are pretty much null-and-void in this circumstance, don't you think? You were this young, innocent girl with wit, charm, and compassion. How was I supposed to ignore the fact that you would grow up? Time moves quickly when you don't age!" he argued.

"I was five! You can't create an image of a person from the way they were as a child!" I reasoned.

"Apparently you're right. I see now that you've grown into a scared girl with serious trust issues!" Noah hissed.

"You've known me for a day!"

"It doesn't matter. We're the same, Phoenix. I feel this connection with you unlike anything I've ever experienced. Don't even pretend that you don't feel it too." I remembered the odd sensation that overtook me yesterday when I first laid eyes on Noah. "But it's not even a matter of trusting me. What about that boy Cayden. If he wouldn't have said anything about your date, you would have denied it to the grave. Here you are, this strong, clever, person, and you don't let anybody besides your family see the real you!"

"What an excellent idea! Tell the world I'm a firebird! That would be grounds for a witch hunt." I was so confused. What was he trying to do? Get me to admit I was a horrible person, or try to make me see how much he cared. He was contradicting himself at every turn.

"I wasn't talking about your abilities, merely the fact that you don't talk to anyone in this school outside of Madeline. I bet before yesterday you never even talked to Cayden!" He had me there. "You don't _trust_ anybody!"

"Maybe you're just upset that I don't trust you," I said in an effort to deflect his attention from my faults. It backfired miserably.

"Grow up, Phoenix. Life is worth absolutely nothing without trust," he said in a subdued voice before turning and walking out the door.


	7. Learning How to Trust

**Chapter Seven: Learning How to Trust**

"Phoenix, you know that you're easily the flyest bitch in this school not to mention the fact that you have some pretty sweet mythical powers…it's just that you lack confidence. Sweetheart, I love you more than any other person in this world, but you have been whining a lot lately," Maddie consoled as we sat cross legged on my bed. The day had gone by in a blur, after playing my role as the lightheaded damsel and paying the school nurse a visit, I had pretty much moped from class to class thinking about Noah's harsh words that had found the weak link in my armor.

"Really? Am I that pathetic? I was under the impression that I was stronger than that!" I hissed, more to myself than to Maddie. I was angry at myself for being so weak!

"Now, you know I love you…"

"Mad, you don't have to keep saying that, I'm not going to be angry at you," I reassured.

"Okay, but I think that Noah has a point, not that he has any right to tell you all of this after knowing you for like two days and a few months when you were five. It's also equally as creepy that he expected you to fall head over heels for him, not to mention that fact that he was obviously so infatuated…"

"Maddie, it's not necessary to bash him. He has a point, you said it yourself. Now tell me what you think, I trust you."

She looked up at me with an odd expression, something between a grimace and a smirk. "Do you trust anybody else?"

That's what Noah had said: that I didn't trust anybody. I looked away from Madeline's sympathetic eyes. He wasn't entirely correct. I loved Madeline and would trust her completely even if she told me that the sun rose from the west. But everyone else…he had me pegged perfectly.

"Truthfully, I've never bother to ask because it never really came up in everyday discussion, but have you ever gone to any of your family members with any personal crisis?" Maddie asked, draping her arm around my neck and resting her head on my shoulder as she normally did when she didn't want me to get angry with her.

I shook my head. "My parents aren't really that supportive. Their both more concerned with trying to transform; it's considered an embarrassment if you aren't able to change into a firebird by the age 680 or so. They really could careless about my teenage angst. Even I realize how pathetic this is! I'm such a human!" Maddie elbowed me hard in the ribs at that comment.

"This human is trying to help you out, Little Miss Charcoal!"

"Sorry…I don't like the idea of bothering the Elders. My grandparents are always researching. Our coven is the top Kaunas, all the other firebirds look to our Elders for advice, hence why Karlstadt was the one to battle that sand beast during the whole kidnapping incident," I tactful refrained from mentioning Noah's name from this memorable event. "I trust Karlstadt, I suppose. I think it's the fact that he isn't actually my blood relative, which makes it easier to talk to him. I wouldn't ask him for help unless I really needed it, but I trust him with all thing firebird, though. He always knows how to explain things just right so that I can actually pull off a fire bending maneuver without taking somebody out. Helios, I wouldn't trust him with my life in any mortally threatening situation, but I can always vent on him…of course I never tell him the whole truth." Wow, I never realized how snobby I must come off as!

"I think you trust the man-whore just fine. You let him drag you into the Mortal Combat sylph edition escapade without any second thoughts." Maddie's voice held a faint hint of disappointment. Geez, she was more like my mother than my real mom was!

"Umm…as much as I would like to take credit for _trusting_ Lios, I just really wanted to use my fire bending and kick ass. I love Lios and all, but I didn't hesitate to lie to him when I was in the car with Noah."

"Yeah, but you felt horrible afterwards. You were practically in tears!" Madeline defended. Wow, how did I get such an amazing friend?

"Like I said, I love Lios. I would never trade him for any other brother, but I wouldn't go to him with any serious issues. So, we've concluded that I'm an obnoxious, unfriendly snob with trust issues!" I hate moments of self-discovery, especially when you discovery you're a total toolbox!

"Well, you trust Karlstadt and me! Thanks for letting me past your Berlin Wall, PhiPhi. See, Noah isn't all bad. He gave you a wake up call that can only help you. Maybe now people won't have to execute crazy intense Airlifts in order to help you out," Maddie joked. Her WWII references were always interesting, I couldn't help but laugh.

"You know what bugs me? Noah was so quick on the uptake. I mean, I've know myself for eighteen years and never realized that I only trust two people. I wasn't even aware of the fact that I never talk to anybody besides you in school!" It was true. Madeline was such an amazing friend that I had never bothered to make new ones. I mean, I would obviously talk to people when asked a direct question or if I was forced to be their lab partner, but if I was alone in a room with somebody else, I wouldn't feel obligated to make conversation.

"Oh, my God! You totally don't! I never noticed, either. Well, if were being fair, you do talk to Cliff and Landon when were at lunch and stuff, but you really should try to expand your friend pool. What if I mysteriously disappeared on day? You'd be a total goner!" she laughed.

"Don't ever say anything like that again! I would go on a killing spree if you weren't around any more!" I shouted. I was serious, but it sounded goofy when I said it out loud like that. Egged on by Maddie's renewed laughter, I couldn't help but join in.

"Wow, Phoenix, you are pathetic! But, I think I've found the solution to yet another puzzle. Your anti-social tendency must translate into mysterious aloofness. Guys are totally into that," Maddie mused.

"Stop, Madeline. We've already been over this! So untrue!"

"As I remember it, Cayden Maloire was my little piece of evidence that stated the affirmative to my theory. I'm sooo excited for that little love fest Friday!" The squeals of delight that issued from Madeline did not stifle the awkward tension that this subject held for me. "So, I'm sorry if I didn't completely follow the _Notes from Underground_ that you were composing in Biology, but what exactly is the issue with Cayden?"

Leave it to Madeline to broach this subject again. "He's sweet."

She shook her head impatiently. "I don't care. Do I look like I care? No. So tell me something more substantial than '_oh, he's sweet' _or I will flip a lid!"

I chuckled under my breath. "Well, he's really awkward, but I like that. I'm just as odd, it makes me feel like I'm on even ground with him, you know? I'm a weird fairytale gone bad and he's living in on the bad end of teenage wasteland. He gets picked on a lot; I _should _get picked on a lot. See? Even ground. You know Tyler Jackson? That idiot who's always bragging about tripping Cayden in gym class? Well, I can't wait until I melt his iPod next chance I get!"

"That's great!" she giggled. "Maybe you should burn his midterm paper, too. Lord knows _he _didn't write it!"

"Thanks for the idea," I pondered that thought with a somewhat sick anticipation.

"Since we're being honest, it sounds like you want to bring Cayden over and paint his toe nails or something. _Gal pals for life_!" she said the last bit in a super girly voice.

"Mmmhh…I don't know. I think I feel more comfortable with Cayden than I do with Noah. Noah and I have such a shady past and he's super judgmental…"

"I thought we established that he was actually super perceptive," interjected Madeline.

I threw her a cross grimace, but my amused chuckled escaped despite my best efforts. "Way to change sides you sunset patriot! I thought you were all about making _me _feel better." Maddie just shrugged in response. "Anyway, I would be much happier if I didn't have to go on a date with Cayden _and _Noah moved back to wherever he came from. Boys add soooo much drama to life!" Maddie nodded knowingly which sparked the curious kitten in me. "Do you have a little confession of your own, dearest?"

An embarrassed smirk played at the corners of Madeline's mouth. "Well, you know how I'm the photography editor for the yearbook?" she looked at me expecting an answer.

"Ahh, YEAH! How could I forget! Continue, continue."

"Okay, well, Cliff joined the club this year and I really think he's adorable. He's really a sweet guy. I've always had a lot of classes with him and he's so smart too. The complete opposite of the cliché tough guy jock," Madeline admitted. I could definitely see this. Cliff was the type of boy who would give up his seat on the shuttle bus in order to make room for that rickety old lady who probably shouldn't be allowed outside of the assisted living facility without supervision. I would have to make it a point to overcome my anti-social tendencies and strike conversation with him to see if he was really worth of my best friend.

"Oh, wow! That's definitely adorable, Madeline!" I gushed, for once sounding like the teenager that I was.

"Really? I'm glad you approve, but I don't think he even likes me. I'm pretty sure he likes you," she diverted her eyes towards my window as she said this.

"What! That is pretty much the most ridiculous thing you've ever said to me, including that one time when you said that you thought Helios was hot…"

"Shhh…you promised me that you would never bring that embarrassing statement up again! I must have been doped up on Nyquil or something…he's such a hound dog. Yuck!" she shuddered at the thought. I laughed at her horrorstricken grimace.

"Sorry, but let's not stray from the point. Cliff joined yearbook to be with YOU, Madeline! It's a pretty blatant sign that he likes you. He's not joining the fire brigade or something in order to spend time with me. Lord knows, he would be clocking quite a few hours extinguishing all the things I set ablaze within the course of the day."

"Really? I hope you're right. He's the perfect person for me. Smart, sweet, funny, incredibly gorgeous," she sighed. "Alright, we sound like twelve year olds right now. Let's do something bad ass to make up for our sappy girl talk."

"How about we tell Lios that the girls' volleyball team is running laps around our block," I offered.

"Oooo, perfect!!! He'll be bookin' it down the street. I bet he'll clock in a fifty seconds from the front door to the intersection!"

"When volleyball players are involved he'll be moving like Superman," I agreed as Madeline and I jumped from my bed and headed down the hall to Lios' room.

"They always move in packs numbering anywhere between twenty to one hundred members. It's not going to be an easy feat to exterminate this infestation. The mere fact that these sylphs were able to trip up our EMD reader says something of their skill as do the recorded earthquakes in the Tucson area," Karlstadt's somber voice issued from the living room where the rest of my family was gathered round, their bodies tense with anticipation. I had just driven Madeline home after having a carefree, much needed recuperative afternoon. Lios, who had helped take my mind off of Noah through his predictable man-whorishness, was now perked on the end of the sofa, his body rigidly leaning forward as Karlstadt paced nervously in the center of the room.

"What do you make of the sylph that Helios and Phoenix encountered? Why do you think it was so far from the rest of the pack?" my mother asked.

"I think that we should be expecting another attack. Sylphs never stray too far from each other unless their planning to relocate," my grandfather answered.

"Which means that the most intelligent course of action would be to pay a visit to Tucson ready to fight. The only problem is we don't know how many sylphs we'll be up against," Karlstadt interjected.

"So all of us will have to go?" Helios asked, brightened slightly at the prospect.

"Yes, that's would give us the best chance of survival. Phoenix, of course will stay here," my grandmother said much to my chagrin. The last thing I needed right now was to be coddled like some toddler. I wanted nothing more than to take my anger and annoyance out on something that deserves it. I was sure that I could be an asset to my family for once, rather than a useless child.

"Why can't Phi come? I know that she's young, but she has some pretty impressive skills. She handled that sylph in the abandoned lot really nicely." I was touched by Helios' belief in my abilities. He was such a sweet brother. Of course, he may only be saying this in order to win that bet we placed ages ago…or was it just yesterday? Wow, if two days felt like an eternity, I wonder what 3000 years would feel like.

"Absolutely not! She's only eighteen years old. We're not taking a teenager into a hotbed of black magic! That would be ludicrous!" my mother screeched.

"Phoenicia is right. Phoenix isn't experienced enough to go up against such powerful creatures, though I don't doubt her growing skills," Karlstadt's soothing words made me feel less inadequate.

"What are you gonna do with her? Leave her home alone? That's just as dangerous as letting her come to Tucson with us!" Lios pressed. Wow, he really wanted to win this bet.

"Phoenix isn't _you_, Helios! We won't come home to find cattle in the living room and an orgy of girls strewn across the floor!" My mother shouted, apparently still irritated by my brothers crazy rager more than a century and a half ago.

"See, she's more responsible than I am. Let her come!"

"Why are you arguing with us? She's staying here, end of story!" My mother's screams were reaching a pinnacle.

"You should have seen her handle that sylph. She incinerated an entire cement wall thrown at her via telekinesis powers. Do you know how hot a flame has to be to turn cement into dust? Pretty freaking hot! And she produced it within seconds! I think she would be an asset to our cause rather than be a liability. I would never want to put her in harms way if I didn't think she could handle it." Even I was impressed by myself. When did Helios become such a wordsmith?

"Really? An entire wall?" my grandfather asked, his voice dripping with interest.

"Oh, shut up, Horus. That's beside the point! She's much too young. They'll be other opportunities in the future, perhaps when she's actually existed for more than two decades." Damn grandmothers and their overprotective ways! Ugh!

"We have to be smart about this operation and bring an eighteen year old along in tow isn't exactly smart. Phoenicia, I'll need you to make as much sound barrier potion as you can within a forty-eight hour period. Helios, read up on sylphs to see if they have any weakness that we're not aware of. The rest of us will strategies attack maneuvers," Karlstadt ordered in a gentle tone.

I heard movement and light footsteps heading towards the hall that I was so obviously eavesdropping at. My futile attempt to scurry for a hiding place turned out to be all for naught when Helios' tall, muscled form came into view. A look of surprise crossed his face as he caught sight of me, but a knowing smirk replaced it within seconds. He grabbed me arm and pulled me up the stairs. "Eavesdropping, are we?"

"Only because the rest of this family thinks that it's totally chill to not include me in family meetings," I answered harshly.

"For the record, I did stick up for you," Lios whispered as he pushed his door open and led me into his room.

"Yes, I heard. Thanks for that. We can even forget about the bet that we made yesterday because you were so sweet," I joked, trying to hide my frustration at being the weakest link in my family unit.

"I wasn't just trying to win a bet, Phoenix. I really think that you could handle yourself just fine. But I guess that once you're three hundred years old or something it's customary to shove a large stick up your ass. If I ever get like that, smack me—hard," Lios huffed.

I chuckled under my breath and nodded. "I'm guessing you want my help in sylph researching," I surmised.

"Yup, they know I suck at this, but apparently I'm too rash to help in strategizing. Here—" He tossed a large, decrepit book towards me which caused me to stagger backwards upon catching it.

"Oh, joy!" I said sarcastically as I accidentally inhaled a large dust plume that was expelled upon opening the large tome.


	8. All it takes is Xbox and ESPN

****

**Hi, I'm republishing this chapter because I really want to add this little sidenote. **

**I have absolutely no knowledge whatsoever concerning Arizona Baseball teams and Xbox. **

**I referenced Left 4 Dead, which is a zombie video game that was technically not released until after the lunch scene conversation actually took place, but it I have to keep it in the story because it holds sentimental value for me lol. I was part of a strickingly similar conversation with the boys in my english class and Life 4 Dead was focial point of the argument that ensued. It was quite hilarious and therefore must remain. (I havenothing against that game if you're a fan)**

**Thanks for reading this story and if your interested I just published the first chapter of a new story so check it out. PLEASE REVIEW. It brightens my day :) **

**Chapter Eight: All it takes is Xbox and ESPN**

The next few days flew by in a blur as my family prepared for there their attack on the Tucson sylph infestation. My mother produced an impressive amount of sound barrier potion, far more than Karlstadt had expected. It was sort of her thing. She was a skilled potion maker and could generate difficult concoctions in far less time than even the Elders.

Helios and I, on the other hand, found virtually nothing of use during our research sessions. All we had to show for three long, sleepless nights of pouring over countless manuscripts was a vague understanding of how sylphs' telekinesis worked, but at least we were able to brush up on our hieroglyph reading skills. I was still infuriated that my family refused to allow me to come with them, but I knew that once their mind was made up I would never be able to alter it.

School was a completely different story. On Wednesday morning, I drove to school alone and pulled into a parking spot in front of the building. Without my usual routine of picking Madeline up (she was getting a ride from her father, much to her chagrin) I was one of the first people to arrive. Deciding it would be pointless to stand alone on the staircase or wander the halls aimlessly, I instead chose to sit in my car and listen to music in an attempt to calm my nerves. I didn't know if Noah would even bother coming to school today, it's not like he was obligated to attend in the first place. I wasn't sure if I wanted to see him or avoid him. My conflicting feels of embarrassment and curiosity were really messing with my head.

I shoved a Linkin Park CD in the player and cranked the volume, allowing the angsty goodness that was so close to my own emotions wash over me as I closed my eyes and bobbed my head to the beat. The muscles in my back loosen and my breathing slowed. I was starting to feel more confident when I opened my eyes and saw Noah pausing in front of my car on his way to the now crowded quad.

His eyes were contemplative, but when my gaze reached his they scrunched up as if he was in pain. I could feel my eyes widen in confusion, but I didn't relinquish my stare. He broke away after a few seconds and strode away in to the crowd. I followed him with my eyes until he was lost in the sea of rambunctious teenagers.

Slumping back into my seat, I ran my fingers through my hair. All of the confidence that I had built up within the past few minutes was destroyed with just one disappointed glance.

European History class was even worse. I was forced to sit behind Noah for an entire forty-five minutes that just dragged by. It was impossible for me to divert my eyes from the back of his soft blondish-brown hair; nothing was able to hold my anxious attention except his tall figure graceful sprawled in his seat.

A few times his chin moved to the side as if he wanted to glance back towards me. Each time I would perk up and hold my breath, but was always disappointed. He never looked, never turned to meet my gaze. My fingers rapped anxiously against my desk as I let my hair fall in front of my eyes like a curtain in a vain attempt to shield Noah from my line of sight. I felt like an inmate forced to spend six months in solitary confinement, it was pure torture!

When the bell rang, Noah jumped up and quickly glided from the room leaving me stunned and downtrodden. I didn't know why I was so upset that Noah wouldn't acknowledge me. Wasn't this precisely what I should want? He wasn't exactly on my family's favorite persons list, after all. This should make things easier for me rather than harder. It was ironic that I longed to hear his voice when just a few days prior I had wanted nothing more than for him to shut his mouth and disappear.

Madeline immediately noticed my somber mood during the lunch period. I was sitting alone flipping through an ancient Egyptian book trying to find anything that could be useful for my family. It provided a distraction, at least. Maddie waltz over and threw her bag down beside me. "Okay, how inconspicuous are you being right now? You're reading hieroglyphics!"

Oh, shoot! I hadn't even thought about that. I quickly stuffed the tome into my bag and gave her a thankful smile.

"What's eating you up? More Noah issues?" she asked as she sat down.

"Yeah, he was staring at me this morning with this really sad and disappointed expression. But then he wouldn't even look at me during Euro class. I feel so guilty!" I confessed.

"Oh, my God, Phoenix! What do you feel guilty about? You didn't do anything wrong! He just had this really distorted perception of you. You are who you are, Phoenix, and you're a great person so stop worrying about what Noah Wilder thinks, okay?" Maddie said, exasperated.

"I know, I know. I realize that it's completely absurd that I feel like this, but I can't help it!" I admitted.

Maddie rolled her eyes. "You seriously need to stop this. It's really sad. I'm almost embarrassed to be your friend. Where's my ass kicking, stone-cold bitch of best friend?"

"Stone-cold bitch, huh?" I smirked.

Maddie looked around conspiratorially before leaning in and whispering, "That's what you come off as to everyone except your family and me."

I shrugged. "Yeah, that's probably true."

"Oh, it's definitely true. Tell you what, if you wanna do something about your completely pathetic state and in the process prove Noah wrong, be as sociable as you can for the next thirty minutes. I want you to talk to everybody at this table. Maybe such a _trying task_will get you to stop moping around like a PMS-ing twelve year old. I truthfully don't think you'll be able to do it."

"Oh, really? I bet I can be as outgoing as a hippie at Woodstock," I countered.

Maddie's mischievous smile told me that this was exactly the responds that she had wanted. "You're on."

The table filled within a few minutes, making me a bit nervous at the prospect of conversing with all these people who probably had never heard me utter a single syllable before. Maddie eyed me as I shifted nervously, trying to find something interesting to say.

Landon and Cliff gave me the perfect opportunity when they began to animatedly discuss the Arizona Diamondback's victory over the Cardinals last night. Though I have never been much of a sports person, Helios was completely obsessed with all things ESPN. He had obnoxious complained about missing the game while we poured over research material and forced me to watch the highlights earlier this morning. B.S-ing baseball knowledge would be a piece of cake.

"Did you see Drew's diving stop catch??!! Oh! It. Was. AMAZING," Landon squealed.

"I know! Now that's dedication! He totally ate dirt!" Cliff added exuberantly.

Now was my chance.

"Chris Young's 2-run homer was so much more impressive! That's his third one this season! Pure Skill!" I echoed Helios' words from this morning. All eyes turned to gawk at me as if I was a freak show attraction. Instead of letting my hair fall into my face like I wanted to, I instead flashed a brilliant smile and looked at Landon and Cliff expectantly.

The boys exchanged stunned glances before two huge identical grins spread across their faces. They high-fived each other and then extended their fist towards me in turn. After I awkwardly pounded both their knuckles, Landon spoke up. "It is sooo nice to have a girl understand the importance of a good baseball game. You have no idea how long I've waited for this moment."

"And it's Phoenix. It's killing two birds with one stone. I was under the impression that you were a mute," Cliff added.

"Well, I guess I was just biding my time until the perfect moment and what's more important than baseball?"…_world hunger, world peace, a horde of angry black magic creatures bent on world destruction, just to name a few. _

"EXACTLY!" Landon and Cliff along with two other boys at the table whom I didn't know despite the fact that I had probably sat with them for three year, exclaimed in unison. Apparently my petty banter was working.

I chanced a glance over to Maddie, who raised her eyebrow and subtly slipped me the thumbs up sign. I turned my attention back to the overly excited boys.

"Alright, let's get a woman's opinion on this highly debated subject," nameless boy number one began. "Zombies or vampires? Which one would you rather be up against if the apocalypse struck right now?"

Wow! WTF? No wonder I don't socialize. I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes and flea from the cafeteria. Well, at least it was an easy question. From personal experience, vampires were nasty, extremely dangerous creatures and zombies didn't exist. I would take my chances with the fictional human fabrications.

"Are we talking _Left 4 Dead _fast-moving-scare-the-shit-out-of-you-projectile-vomiting-zombies or _Dawn of the Dead_that-son-of-a-bitch-just crawled-out-of-the-ground-and-bite-my-leg-off-zombies?" I would definitely have to thank Helios for his Xbox obsession. To think that I had always told him what a waste of time videogames were, especially for somebody a century and a half old.

"Shit! This chick plays Xbox!" one of the boys exclaimed.

"Shut it, Derek!" Apparently nameless boy number one had a name after all. "We're talking _Left 4 Dead_. Vampire or Zombie?" Landon continued.

I scrunched my face up in faux concentration and stroked my chin with my thumb and index finger. "I would still take my chances with the zombies. I'm not a believer in the whole garlic and wooden stake methods of killing vamps," namely because that was complete bullshit. "It would be way easier to chop off a few heads."

"See, I told you!" nameless wonder two said. "Phoenix, I'm in complete agreement. It would be SOO much easier to kill a zombie than a vampire!"

I tried to sound like I was laughing with the kid rather than at him.

I turned my attention to Maddie and the two other girls who were also sitting at our table once Landon and Cliff tried to get me in on a fantasy football game. If looks could kill, I'd probably be dead. I'm serious, these chicks were glaring at me like nobody's business. I'm talking Mean Girls meets the abominable freaking snowman.

"So are you girls excited for the homecomingdance?" I asked. Homecoming. That had to be a safe, girly topic.

"Oh, yeah. It's gonna be amazing. I hear Pam Dunkin is doing the decorations. She is always fantastic," Maddie replied coming to my aide. I gave her a barely noticeable smile. "Tara, are you going with Tim?"

The tiny, stick thin Kate Moss look-a-like spoke up, "Yeah. He's starting varsity quarterback this year! It's gonna be soo amazing goingto homecoming with the football star! Who are you guys going with?" Tara seemed to have warmed to my presence, but the other girl, a snobby looking brunette who appeared to have a gigantic stick up her ass, sneered at me.

"Jared broke up with me last week. He's such a douchebag! Now I'm stuck going stag." Again her bead eyes zeroed in on me as if I had been the one to broach the subject rather than Tara.

"Oh, that's harsh, B. I'm sure you'll find somebody though," Maddie comforted, noting the death stare that this chick was giving me.

"Probably not. All the good dates are taken, besides everyone in this school is so immature. I wouldn't want to spend ten seconds with them let alone an entire dance!" she hissed, a clear case of sour grapes.

That gave me an idea. "Well, B, if you want I could hook you up with my brother. He is such a social butterfly. Dances are sort of his forte," I offered. Even though she seemed like a complete bitch, Helios didn't normally go for personality. Who knows, maybe he would be able to loosed her up.

B looked at me skeptically. "How old is he?"

I grinned to myself. Old enough to be your great-great-grandfather. "He's twenty."

Her eyes brightened when she learned that she'd be dating an older man. "What does he do? College? Job?"

I frown slightly. Time to fabricate the truth. "He's a Marine, but he's home for a few months. I'm sure he would love to come to the dance."

"Oh, my, GAWD, Phoenix. That would be the coolest thing ever! A Marine! So he MUST be hot!!!" she shouted.

Maddie was shaking with laughed. I tried to silence her with a nudge.

"That's so cool of you, Phoenix," Tara squealed as she grabbed B's hand in excitement. "You guys should totally come over my house before hand. It'll be awesome."

"Sweet! So what's the date status with you two," B had all of sudden become my best friend. It was sickening. I was about to say that I had no intention whatsoever of attending the homecoming dance, when I noticed that the boys had stopped their football drafts to listen in on our conversation. I was pleased to see that Cliff's eyes were focused on the now blushing Maddie.

"Well, Maddie is really particular about the guys she goes out with. He has to be someone who she can easily talk to and who shared the same interests. I'm pretty sure she would marry anyone who could hold a conversation about photography or yearbook club with her," I laughed. "She's a stickler for those wrestlers, too." Maddie stomped on my foot, but I just grinned at her. Cliff had leaned forward during the course of our conversation obviously getting the hint. Score for Phoenix! Damn, I was good.

"Wow, if only there was a prince charming, right Maddie?" Tara giggled.

"Yes, if only," I said throwing Cliff a glance thick with implication.

"Whatever. What about you, Phi?" B interjected rudely.

"I'm not…" the bell rang saving me from a drawn out explanation of why I was against anything school related. I was especially relieved that I would not have to continue talking to B, though I was quite certain her initials derived from a five letter word ending in _–itch_.

Maddie jabbed me in the ribs. "Thanks for that," she said sarcastically.

"You're welcome."

"Well, you certainly accomplished your job, Phoenix," she said motioning to her left with her head. I followed her gesture and locked eyes with a severely confused Noah. He dropped his gaze when he saw me looking at him and once again disappeared into the crowd. I was thanking God that Cayden wasn't in this lunch, lest we have a repeat of yesterday unfortunate events.

"Totally jealous?" Maddie chirped.

"Jealous of what? That I can successfully hold a conversation about zombies?" I dismissed.

"Nope, that you gave those boy more attention than you've given him. Noah has been craving your attention for thirteen years now…which is still wicked creepy…and here you are talking to everyone but him. For all he knows, you're always this talkative and his sudden appearance just threw out of whack. If he thinks that's true than his entire argument is null-and-void making him look like a total tool," she reasoned.

"But he was right."

She shrugged indifferently. "He doesn't have to know that. I'll meet you after school. I wanna see the look on Helios' face when you tell him about his bangin' homecoming date. I think even _he _may object to that psycho." A smirk crossed her lips as she waved and pranced away.

I smiled to myself, totally loving what a genius Madeline was.

11


	9. The Case of the Broken Flux Capacitor

*****This is chapter is one of my favorites. It's Cayden and Phoenix's date night!!! **

**Just for the record, I'm an avid Back to the Future fan and absolutely love Indian food and am from Rhode Island hence why these amazing things are reference in this chapter.**

**Please Review and I'll give shout outs next chapter, promise!!**

**Chapter Nine: The Case of the Broken Flux Capacitor **

On Friday morning, my family left for Tucson. My mother and father loaded into their Jaguar while the Elder's transported themselves via Firebird flames, which was so much more convenient. They would scope out the terrain and discover which of the preplanned battle techniques would work the best.

"Be careful and don't do anything stupid," I warned Helios after Karlstadt had disappeared in a spiral of flames, his white feathers consumed by the inferno.

Helios' booming laughter filled the room. "Are you serious, Phoenix? I always do stupid things! My stupidity is my greatest ally. No worries, sis, we'll win this one in no time." He brushed off his shoulders theatrically while I rolled my eyes at his overconfidence.

Before I knew what was going on, Helios had scooped me into a vice-like bear-hug that robbed the air from my lungs. I awkwardly patted his back, partly out of affection and partly as a plea for oxygen.

My dad obnoxiously blared the horn cutting our brother-sister bonding time short. Once I was breathing normally, I reminded Helios of the trivial knowledge we had gained through our research—the larynx are the weakest point on sylphs, their voices are the most powerful ability that they possess followed closely by telekinesis…the same old information to which we were already privy to.

After pecking his cheek, I pushed him out the front door lest my father should have an aneurysm due to his lack of patience. You'd think that after six hundred plus years he would learn to calm down, but I suppose his annoyance at the fact that he can't transform yet has taken its toll on him. Poor shmuck. I seriously hoped that Helios and I never became that annoying and pathetic.

My family's early departure left me an extra hour before school started, but I was far too restless to do anything productive so I drove over to Madeline's instead.

I let myself in using the spare key hidden in the compartment of an artificial rock that was meant to be inconspicuous and blend into the environment. It was an utter failure and, if I had wanted to, I could have successfully robbed Maddie's house at the age of six when I had first discovered their horrible hiding spot.

"Maddie, It just me, not some psychopath that wants to make a coat out of your skin. No worries," I howled up the staircase to give her fair warning of my presence.

"Phoenix, you have a sick mind," her answering call sounded from the second floor.

"I'm well aware of that fact."

Maddie clambered down the stairs and threw herself onto the sofa that I was already sitting on. "So is your familia heading to Tucson yet?"

"Yeah, they just left. Sorry for the intrusion by the way," I said out of courtesy. I did this so often that she was practically immune to my presence at such early hours.

"No prob. I won't worry too much about the infestation. Karlstadt knows what he's doing," Maddie said.

"I feel like I should've researched harder. It was the only thing they would allow me do, the only way that I could help out. All I managed to find out were really obvious facts. There's some piece of information that I'm missing and it's gonna make all the difference for the clan, I just know it. If I only had two days extra I'm sure I could have found something useful, an indispensable bit of knowledge! It's so infuriating! I should be there with them!!" I vented.

I always got this way when one of my family members went on a raid without me. My nervous went into overdrive and I was pretty much a wreck for the first few days of their absence. This raid was different, however, as it was the first one that my entire family partook in and its objective also happened to be a coven of one the deadliest black magic creatures imaginable. How was I supposed to function in school with this black cloud hanging over my head? Granted, I could always skip out, but that would just give me eight full hours of undistracted torture in which I would undoubtedly dwell upon the rumble that was going to go down within a few short hours.

"You busted your ass searching through book after book, some of them printed in languages I never even knew existed! Stop it right now, Phoenix! You can't do anything more. And besides, Helios was helping you and he didn't find any useful information either," Maddie stated in a huff. She was well acquainted with my pre-raid jitters.

"Comparing me to Helios in regards to research abilities is a mortal sin. Helios is pretty much useless in that area. His contribution was wikipedia-ing 'hot sylph crazy bitches' and he actually thought that an article would exist under that title!" I screeched.

Maddie's eyebrows curved into a disbelieving arch. "Did he really? Oh, that's really sad. Thank God he has his strength 'cause good looks can only take you so far."

"He could have been so much more helpful with planning the attack, but my dad was being a tool and pretty much forced him to do research. The Elders agreed, but Karlstadt pulled Helios aside to help him out. I swear, the only person who knows what they're doing is Karlstadt and that worries me. My brother can be so rash, but he has a crazy amount of luck. My mother is really good with potion making and all, but she sucks at hand to hand combat. My dad's a tool. The grandparents do whatever they need to, but they're not that impressive, either. I bet that'll come back to bit them soon," I continued.

"Somebody's exaggerating a bit. Stop thinking about it, it's all you can do. Besides, they've never lost before," reasoned Madeline as she twirled a strained of her hair around her index finger.

"Maybe I should go home and grab another manuscript. I could find something important and phone them…"

"I don't think so. You're ridiculous, come on," she jumped up from the couch and grabbed my arm, pulling me up alongside her. "Go!" She pushed my back, directing me towards the door. "School starts in fifteen minutes. I'll buy you a chai to calm your nervous, darling. Hurry, hurry!"

I grinned at Madeline's faux bossy attitude, appreciating her attempt to get my mind off of my worries.

********************************************************************************************

With chais clutched firmly in our hands we arrived to school just in time to pass Noah on the way to first period. It was horrible timing. Or perfect timing to a mind like Madeline's. I diverted my eyes from his graceful form, knowing that he would somehow be able to surmise that I was staring at him. Apparently Madeline was counting on that probability.

"I know this is next to impossible, but try to be flirty," Maddie whispered before shoving me with excessive force towards a group of congregating boys.

With a yelp of surprise and indignation, I clumsily stumbled into crowd, knocking one boy down and falling into another's arms. My cheeks colored with embarrassment and flames were threatening to explode from my skin. What was Maddie's deal? Was she really that fed up with me? I chucked her a dirt look, before turning to the boy whose arms I was currently resting in.

"I'm so sorry. My friend pushed me and I…" then everything clicked. Maddie was a devilish little thing.

"Well, I can't have you breaking any bones before tonight, can I? It was lucky I was here," Cayden laughed, his eyes bright with amusement.

My jaw was still hanging somewhere around my collarbone as I wracked my brain for something to say in this unceremonious circumstance. Remembering what Madeline had advised, I made a pathetic attempt at flirtation.

By now, I could feel Noah's gaze on me. It was like Peter Parker's spider sense; my own personal 'Noah sense.' How pitiful was I?

"Wow, you're my own personal superhero," I said casually and added in a laugh for effect. "I can safely say that you just rescued me from a face plant. That would have been so embarrassing!" I straightened up and let my hands linger in his as I regained my balance. Sadly, that was pretty much my flirt capacity.

I felt horribly guilty using Cayden to make Noah jealous. Cayden was an amazingly kind person, most likely one of the only decent guys in this school. I really did care about him, perhaps more than I should, but I was beginning to want _Noah_ more than was healthy.

"Are you ready for out big date tonight?" Cayden asked, closing the distance between us that I had created when untangling myself from his arms.

Normally, such close proximity would make me uncomfortable and probably cause me to say such cheerful sentiments as "Do you _wanna_ get punched out?" or "Get out the hell out face, before I shank you!" Needless to say, I can clear out a room rather easily.

But, oddly enough, Cayden's intimate stance didn't bother me as I would have expected it to. Instead of bitching him out, I reflexively smiled, feeling a sort of kinship with him.

"I've been looking forward to it all week," I answered even though all of the craziness of the day had driven it out of my head. He was a sweet kid and hanging out with him wouldn't be completely horrible, though I was still not a fan of dating.

Cayden's smile widened to a near impossible width. "Really? I swear you're gonna have an amazing time. I have everything planned out. It's gonna be perfect!" Aw, shit. Now I feel even guiltier. He had obviously expended a great deal of energy to make this date amazing and I was at this very moment using him to make another boy realize what an jerk he was for flipping out on me. This was so not fair to him. I promised myself that for the next twenty-four hours or so I would not allow my mind to dwell on Noah Wilder.

"I can't wait." I doubted that he heard the guilt wavering in my voice.

Inadvertently, my eyes drifted over Cayden's shoulder and locked with Noah's. There was defiantly sadness and defeat present in those deep green spheres. I bit my lip before shaking my head in disbelief.

Damn! That was a new record—two seconds! I was either the least sincere person in the world or shared some messed up magnetic attraction with Noah.

Okay, _no more Noah! I didn't __**like**__ Noah like that. _As far as I'm concerned, for the rest of the day Noah didn't exist. After all, Noah was kind of being a jerk! I had to prevail out of respect to Cayden.

I redirected my gaze to Cayden's crystal blue eyes and smiled. "See you at seven?"

"Not a second later."

The doorbell's chime resonated throughout the empty house at exactly seven o'clock. I sucked in a nervous breath and hopped down the stairs, my black suede boots hardly making a sound as they hit the hardwood floor.

This was technically my first date. I had made it a point to steer clear of boys; what's the use in starting something that can't possible end well. I told myself that it was Maddie's fault I was being forced to partake in this ridiculous teenage ritual—at least this explanation allowed me to retain my steel edge. The truth was, no guy had ever actually asked me out and Cayden's invitation had startled me.

Then there was the whole Noah deal. Madeline was adamant on the idea that I was madly and secretly in love with him, but if that were true she would have been the first person I would have told. No, I wasn't madly in love with Noah Wilder, but I had a suspicious feeling that it would be extremely easy to fall in love with him.

_Okay, not what I want to be thinking about right now_, I told myself as I realized that I had once again broken my vow for about the billionth time today.

Cayden, on the other hand, was adorable in that geeky all around good guy way. They way I felt about him confused me. There was no spark, no uncontrollable fir, but there was definitely happiness and comfort. That was something, right?

I glanced in the hall mirror and straightened the loose hanging collar of my sleeveless, turtleneck sweater dress. I had to admit that I looked pretty hot. The rich emerald green hue of my dress was in starch contrast to my mane of ginger red hair and pale cream colored skin. It matched the shade of my eyes exactly. My dress fit like a glove, falling just above my knees. I gave myself a reassuring nod and opened the front door where Cayden was waiting nervously, a white rose clutched in his hand.

His face lit up as I stepped out onto the stone walkway. "You look…wow! You're breathtaking. This is for you, by the way." He held out the single white rose which I accepted with a reciprocating smile.

"Thank you, you really didn't have to," I stammered.

"Oh, please. It's the gentlemanly thing to do. Are your parents home? I would like to introduce myself." Despite its corniness, his sentiments were adorable.

"No, my entire family went to Tucson for the weekend. Believe me, you're not really missing much." He looked a bit disappointed, but he quickly cleared his features. "I'm sorry. Were you planning to meet them?" I added.

"Well, truthfully, yes. But it's no big deal," he replied, downtrodden.

An involuntary chuckle that I instantly regretted escaped my pursed lips. He looked up in confusion, so I clarified. "My parents won't hunt you down if you take me out without first introducing yourself to them. Trust me, you're tame compared to what I could be dating." _Noah_…_shit! Stop. Stop. Stop!!_

Cayden's face brightened again. "I'll take your word for it, then. It just seems like the courteous thing to do, you know, meet the parents."

I shrugged and flicked my wrist as if waving off that idea. "Sounds cliché to me. Let's live on the edge."

"Oh, yeah. We're such rebels," Cayden joked.

"Tell you what, you can meet them when they come back. I'll put a good word in for you and everything." I made an attempt to ease his nerves.

He shook his head in amusement, clearly understanding my reassuring motivations. "Thanks, Phoenix. If your parents are anything like you, I'll be in for a treat. Mysterious, witty, mildly eccentric—it'll be like Christmas."

I laughed effortlessly. "More like the _Nightmare Before Christmas_." Again, he just shook his head, a lightheartedly smile dancing on his lips.

"I'm parked on the street, shall we?" he extended the crook of his elbow out as if he was ready to escort a debutant. Then I realized that I was the debutant. I was _never_ the little princess girl and I wasn't too sure if I liked being treated like one, but I slide my arm around his and continued down the moonlit walkway.

I stopped in my tracks when I saw his car, unable to suppress an obnoxious chortle. "Whoa, Marty McFly, did the flux capacitor breakdown leaving you stranded in the twenty-first century? Seriously, a Delorean? Are these things even street legal anymore?"

Cayden rolled his eyes as if he'd heard it all before, the corners of his mouth twitching. "I knew you'd be the kind of girl who'd crack a joke about my ride."

I instantly felt ashamed. "Oh, Cayden, I'm sorry. It just caught me by surprise…"

"I'm not insulted," he said before I could continue. He inclined his head towards mine and whispered, "Between you and me, I thought that this was Doc Brown's house. Imagine my surprise when such a breathtakingly beautiful girl opened the door." Now it was my turn to be flustered. When did Cayden Maloire turn into Rico Suave? Well, the nerdy _Back to the Future _referencing version of Rico Suave.

"Wow, McFly, since when did you become such a smooth talker?" I bantered, unable to help myself.

He raised his eyebrows innocently. "You can only be born with my skills. It's not as though I planned that line out all day, hoping you would bring up anything remotely related to time travel." I burst into laughter. "If you had so much asked for the time, I would have wiped that pick up line out on you."

"I knew I should have stuck with 'That's a fresh ride, Cayden!' and left it at that. It would have been worth it to hear you try to set yourself up for _Back to the Future_ allusion."

"But you fell into my trap instead. Just as I planned," he teased as he opened the door for me. I was almost knocked out as the scissor-doors retracted upwards.

I slid into the soft bucket-seat and took another breath while Cayden circled around to the driver's side.

"See, no Flux Capacitor." He used his thumb to point to the back seat. I laughed in responds, getting a little nervous as we drove away from my house, my safe haven.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"My family owns an Indian restaurant downtown…do you like Indian food. We can go anywhere you want if you don't… It was just an idea… I really should've asked you before… I'm sorry," he rambled, obviously nervous now.

"Whoa, Cayden, calm down! Where did that smooth talker go?" He shrugged apologetically and I slapped him on the shoulder playfully. "I happen to love Indian food. My grandparents are big fans and they always make it. I didn't know there was a restaurant in the city though?"

His shoulders relaxed. "Oh, good. It attracts mostly college kids, so not many adults know about."

"Why did your parents open an Indian food restaurant?" I asked curiously. There was no way that Cayden was Indian. He was almost as white as me.

Noah chortled in response. "You're not the first to ask, believe me. French heritage and Indian restaurant don't seem to mesh well, huh?" I nodded in response. "My parent met in India. They're both sort of hippies, but not the cool VW van owning, Woodstock attending ones. They're more like, world-peace-is-where-it-at kind of hippies, both of them were in the Peace Corps and everything. They were both anthropology students and were observing the Indian culture when they met, but loved India so much that they stayed for twenty years. I was actually born in New Delhi."

"That is so amazing! Isn't it weird how things like that work? I mean, your parents were so similar and they meet half way around the world." Sometimes I wondered if there was a predestined fate for all of us, an idea that I had previously been opposed to. I liked to have control, but Cayden's parent's meet cute was just too coincidental.

"My parents are perfect for each other, too. It's weird!" he laughed.

"I think our parents would get along great. My entire family is on the crusade for world peace. My grandparents even know the Dali llama," I told him.

"The Dalai Lama!? Don't tell my mom and dad that. They would probably show up to your house and start kissing you grandparent's feet because they've walked in his Tibetan footsteps?' Are you serious? The Dalai Lama?" Disbelief colored Cayden's voice.

"I'm serious. My family likes to travel, but of course I've never been out of the country, how fair is that?"

"You should complain!" Cayden sympathized. "Where are you from, then?"

"Well, _I_ was born here in Phoenix…"

"…yeah I made the name connection, _Phoenix Faryn_. I meant where are your parents and their parents from?" He rolled his eyes in faux exasperation.

"Geesh, you're impatient! I was getting to that! My grandma and grandpa on my mother's side were born in Egypt, but she was born in Israel. My dad was born in Germany and was raised by Karlstadt, who's pretty much the coolest adult in the world. He lives with us too. My brother was born in Greece, so I'm the only native born American," I explained. Cayden's brow contracted in bewilderment.

"How did _your _parents meet? Israel and Germany? How did that work out? And where did you get the red hair from?"

"Umm…" I wasn't about to tell him that there were about one hundred Firebirds in the world all of whom knew each other. I shouldn't have gotten into this with him; it was such a bad idea. "My parents went to college together here in American and study abroad in Greece for two years, which is when they had my brother." Even I was impressed by my lie. "My grandmother has red hair, too, and I have no idea where it comes from."

In truth, Firebirds' possess every physical trait imaginable which means that any characteristic can be passed to offspring despite the attributes of the mother and father, save for one exception—our pale coloring. My brother and I, for example, are complete opposites even though we share the same parents. He has dark features and I'm stuck with red hair.

"Wow, I feel lame now. I was trying to impress you with my exotic heritage and here you are with a family scattered around the world! I'm the one who's impressed!" he exclaimed.

"Are you serious? I've only been out of Arizona once…" _when I was kidnapped by Noah Wilder. Damn it, not again!_ "…and you were born in India. That's ridiculously exciting."

"Thanks for the pity points, but they're not necessary," he said jokingly, but I registered a hint of truthfulness behind them.

"Believe me I don't throw around compliments unless they're well deserved. Right now, I'm truthfully impressed that you were able to make a Delorean seem cool. That is an amazing accomplishment." My reassurance worked; a genuine smile expanded across Cayden's face.

"Well, in that case thank you."

He pulled into a parking space in front of a crowded two-story stucco building and jogged around the car to open the door for me. Strings of miniature lanterns adorned the outside of the building which cast an eerie, exotic glow about the exterior of the restaurant. Layers of thin gauzy curtains blocked the inside of the dining room from view and acted as a filter, throwing patches of purple, red, and blue light onto the crowded walkway. Now _this_ was severely impressive!

"Wow, this place is gorgeous!" I exclaimed.

"Wait until you see the inside," he told me, clearly pleased by my reaction. He led me past the long, winding line of impatient college students and ushered my through the glass entrance.

"Good evening, Mr. Maloire," greeted the maitre d' flashing a smile at Cayden and me as we passed by.

"Have a good night, Tim," Cayden answered before taking my hand and leading me past the gorgeous dining area. The room was dimly lit with various types of plants strewn strategically about the room, creating a rainforest atmosphere. In the place of conventional booths, there were instead plush throw pillows with corresponding tables standing two and a half feet off the ground. It was if I had been transported halfway around the world.

"We're dining upstairs," Cayden informed me when I had involuntarily stopped to gawk at my surroundings. I quickly regained my composure and followed him up the spiral staircase which opened out into a similar dining area. He led me around a corner to a set of glass double doors. "Shall we?" he asked, opening the tastefully decorated door.

My jaw dropped yet again. He laughed and escorted me onto the most beautiful patio ever created. Vines hung from the wrought iron fencing and potted plants added burst of exotic color that complimented the ornate throw pillows perfectly. Four massive, stained-glass lanterns that were perched on pedestals surrounding our ground-level table cast a mystical glow about the porch. The exposed full moon and twinkling stars added to this effect.

"What do you think? Too much?" he asked.

"NO! It's perfect! Absolutely beautiful?"

Another smile rose to his lips as he directed me towards one of the plush throw pillow seats. He plopped down on the side of me and handed me a menu before restarting conversation. Forty minutes and five appetizers later we order our food. The majority of our conversation had consisted of lighthearted banter as we discussed our favorite bands and books, before it turned to future goals—oh, joy!

"So, you come from a family of globe trotters but haven't been out of the state, do you want to go far away for college." Well, at least I did have a college plan even though I wouldn't be entering the workforce anytime soon.

"I applied for Early Decision at Brown University as last year and got accepted so, Rhode Island it is!" I told him. College was a big deal in my family. After I graduated, the entire clan would move to New England so that I could obtain the best possible education.

Brown had always been my dream college and I had wasted no time in submitting my application. Helios was also going to take a few classes at Brown in order to brush up on his philosophy; he was almost as excited as I was. Even though he was easily distracted by sports and videogames, Helios was an amazingly intelligent person, but could not endure the tedium of high school, hence why he refused to enroll alongside me. College would be an exciting change. Madeline was also planning on applying to Brown and Providence College, both of which she would easily get into.

"You've already got accepted into an Ivy League school? Nice job!" he congratulated. "What are you planning to study?"

"Archaeology with an Ancient Egyptian focus…" a major that would be very useful as a Firebird. "What about you? What are your plans for next year?"

"Well, I pale in comparison to you, Indiana Jones, but I'm planning on being an engineer," he told me. "I kinda wanna to take a year off and travel. My parents are all for that, but I'm not sure if that would be a smart plan…I might never want to come back!"

"What's stopping you from going? The thought that it might be a great experience?" I tried to comprehend.

He chuckled in responds. "Yeah, I guess so. It's just that the world is such a vast, amazing creation…I want to see ALL of it. I could spend my entire life visiting every single country, see every wonder of the world, manmade or otherwise, and I still wouldn't be able to say that I've seen enough. I wouldn't want to force myself to stop after just one year, that's not nearly enough time. Life's too short, and it bugs me sometimes. If I could live to be six hundred years old, there would be so much time to help the world become a better place. I'd be able to actually make a difference…I guess my parent's tree hugging tendencies have rubbed off on me," he seemed to be slightly embarrassed by his rant.

But not as embarrassed as I was. Cayden had such a passion for life, such an appreciation for the earth and the finite gift of time, a characteristic very rare for a teenager to possess. And here _I_ was, a young Firebird, practically guaranteed three thousand years of life, and I didn't want it. I was already jaded at the age of eighteen. I felt ashamed.

Of course I planned on bettering the world within my lifetime, what with exterminating dark creatures and all, but to have that desire, that selflessness without the accompanying superpowers was a trait that I admired about Cayden. He reminded me of Madeline and her fervor for volunteering. Perhaps it was a human attribute that I would never have the pleasure of experiencing. I desperately prayed that that wasn't true.

"Cayden, you're a special person, you know that? You care so much about everything, that's a gift! I wish I wasn't such a pessimist; I wish I was like you. So you have to pick up my slack and go on a trip around the world, being the Good Samaritan to anybody in need. If that's what you want, then you should go for!" I advised him wholeheartedly.

"Really, you don't find me to be a wimp or something?" His self-consciousness was evident in his voice, a striking contrast to the confident boy who had rolled up to my house a few hours ago.

"What? Of course not? Not many guys would put their lives at risk to help others. That's what I call bravery."

"Thanks, Phoenix. I really needed to hear that."

Our food arrived and we sat in companionable silence for a few minutes as I absorbed the possible meaning behind his words.

"Did somebody make fun of you for wanting to help others, or something?" That was the only explanation I could come up with for his lack of self-assurance.

"It's no big deal, but you just made me realize that I was stupid for listening to other, so all's well. Let's change the subject, though." It was probably Tyler Jackson, that idiot who was always making fun of Cayden in gym class, I knew it was. That jerk was gonna get more than his iPod burned the next time I saw him. But I would drop the subject if that was what Cayden wanted; it was clearly making him uncomfortable.

"Okay. Subject changed. How about you show me some Indian dance moves," I grinned innocently.

He laughed and rolled his eyes. "I'm pretty much Lord of the Step in these part, little lady," he joked as he rose to his feet, resigned.

The speakers above the door provided us with excellent Indian sitar music perfect for a dance performance. "I don't consider the night complete if at least one person doesn't dance around the dining room. What you do is flick your wrist like this and sway your hips a little…" he animatedly reenacted these motions in a surprising skilled and graceful manner. It was scary! I couldn't help but keel over will laughter.

"No, but seriously, the guys go just as crazy as the girls do. It's pretty much the funniest thing to watch. They get really into it and hum along to the beat."

"Show me!" I yelled between fits of laughter.

He winked. "For you, I'll subject myself to the embarrassment." He started convulsing rhythmically to the music before dropping to the floor and break dancing. It was hilarious!

"Damn, Cayden! You can bust a move!" I complimented.

"I'm not exaggerating. People dance like that all the time here in front of perfect strangers. It never gets old!" he resumed his seat next to me and we continued talking well into the night.

It was twelve o'clock by the time we pulled back into my driveway. I must admit that this was far from being the worst experience in my life; in fact, Cayden had become one of my favorite people in the world. Romantically, however, I just wasn't feeling it.

"Cayden, I had an awesome time. Thanks for free styling to Indian music for me," I told him as he walked me to the front door.

"Yeah, about that… If you tell anybody, I'll send a hit man after you," he joked. I chortled.

"I'm glad Madeline stopped you in the hall the other day. I know that I just gained an awesome friend," Shit…I didn't me to drop the friend bomb on him so bluntly.

"Just friends, huh?" He caught on like I knew he would.

I looked at my feet. "I'm sorry, Cayden. I just don't feel anything romantic for you, but any guy who can be as adorable as you and can plan such an amazing date will find the perfect girl easily."

"But, she not you?"

"No, she's not me, I'm sorry." I couldn't bring myself to look him in the eyes. I felt like such a jerk for doing this after his perfectly organized date, but I didn't want to lead him on. The conflicting feelings I had felt over Cayden prior to tonight had resolved themselves into a strong platonic affection. He could easily become one of my best friend, but never my boyfriend. And the fact that he was human also lent itself to that conclusion.

He let out a sigh and his head fell. I simply couldn't have this. "Cayden, I really wish I felt something more for you because you would make an amazing boyfriend, but it wouldn't be fair to you."

"No, I understand. We're friends, though, right?" His tone was still slightly downtrodden.

"Of course. I need a few if you haven't noticed. You successfully broken down my defenses, Cayden Maloire. Not you can join the ranks of the great…namely Madeline," my attempts at light-heartedness were pretty lame.

"Wow, at least that's an accomplishment," he laughed. His smile didn't reach his eyes, but it was a start. He would soon get over the initial let down. I wasn't a great catch and even Cayden, the nicest boy in the word, would realize that after a few days. Noah was the only person who could understand my freakishness—and I now realized that I was in love him.

There was no point in denying it anymore. I was in love with Noah Wilder, no matter how sick and unhealthy that fact was. Unfortunately, Noah had been too perceptive and had seen right through my defenses. He had seen the pathetic nut-case that I really was and now only felt disappointment where he had once felt affection. He wasn't jealous like Maddie thought, he was confused by my sudden burst of false charisma and that was all.

"Good night, Cayden. I'm sorry," I hugged him goodbye and gave him a sincere smile.

"Please don't apologize. I'm happy to be your friend."

I nodded. "Drive safely, the roads are really sandy," I said as he walked to his car.

"No problem. This baby comes equipped with a hover function. Didn't you see the sequel?"

I smiled, clinging to that joke as if it was a peace offering, a sign that we would truly remain friends. "Silly me. How could I forget?"

"Night, Phi." He waved as he climbed into the driver's seat and sped away.

*****Thanks for reading! I really appreciate it. You're in for a real treat next chapter. There's gonna be hot and heavy Noah-Phoenix bonding time and beaucoup de drama! I may be a little slow to update because I'm working on another story which is also on FanFic, but ****Phoenix**** is still my number one priority. **

*****Notes: The Cayden dance session was inspired by a memorable hooka bar experience in which our waiter demonstrated how people bust moves all the time. It was hilarious!**

*****It the following chapters Phoenix will stop being such an indecisive tool, btw. Lol**

**Again PLEASE REVIEW!!!!PLEASE REVIEW!!!! I really want to get your thoughts about the chapter because it was a hard one to write. **

**Again, I write quicker with more reviews.**


	10. Supernova

******12/27/08 Note: Okay so I've decided that the Noah POV chapter simply must be published. It really explains Noah's crazy bipolar mood swings and pychoic behavior. I'm almost finished with it so expect an update within a few days. Thanks and sorry about the republishing of this chapter.**

*****Alright, this is a pretty intense chapter…a lot different than all of my other ones—just a warning. It was the product of a snow day and a cancelled ski trip. I hope that you like it! Noah and Phoenix time!**

**Chapter Ten: Supernova **

The sun had not yet breeched the Arizona sky when I was awakened by a series of furious knocks coupled with impatient doorbell ringing. With a disgruntle groan, I crawled out of bed and glanced at the clock with blurry morning eyes. Five thirty. Apparently, the concept of beauty sleep was lost on the idiot who was banging away at my door.

I exhaled a resigned sigh and shuffled out of my room as I rubbed my eyes. I didn't bother to grab my bathrobe as I past it hanging on the banister, due to my sneaking suspicion that my early morning visitor was none-other-than gossip girl Madeline, unable to contain her curiosity over my date with Cayden until a reasonable hour. I rolled my eyes. That was definitely a Maddie move, but I truthfully couldn't complain; she put up with my emotional breakdown yesterday morning with hardly any grumbles.

So I made my way to the front door, sparsely clad in a lacy black camisole and a matching pair of hip huggers, stubbing my toe on stairs in the process. Wonderful start to the morning! Screw courtesy…Maddie I was going to kill Maddie!

By hands grasped the doorknob as the deafening blows reached a climax, coming in such a great frequency that the speed impressed me. With my eyes closed partly out of annoyance and partly because they were so heavy with sleep, I wrenched the door open, cutting the obnoxious rapping short.

"Madeline, is it really necessary to wake me up at five thirty in the morning? What's your deal," I half shouted, half yawned. My eyes reluctantly fluttered open after a few seconds of silence. Silence was definitely not Maddie's style.

Which made perfect sense…because it wasn't Maddie.

Standing on my front porch, with a slightly disheveled appearance, was Noah freaking Wilder.

My breath hitched as the realization hit me. Noah obviously had something extremely important to tell me, what else would explain his sudden, unceremonious visit?

His eyes were burning with an intensity that I'd never seen in those emerald orbs before. It was a strange mixture of desperation, insanity, anger, pain, and something else—passion? Yeah, right. Just because I was madly in love with him didn't mean that he still reciprocated that affection.

I noticed that his hands were balled into fists as if he was restraining himself, the skin pulled so tight across his knuckles that his tendons were clearly visible. His shoulders were hunched as a tremor ran through his body, causing him to shake slightly. It was disconcerting to say the least, but he was still the most beautiful creature I had ever laid eyes on, even in a state of madness.

"Noah? What's wrong?" I asked frantically, desperate to discover the basis behind his odd behavior. I longed to throw my arms around him and offer any comfort that I could. His pain was almost unbearable. It made me shudder to think of the reason behind his sudden change in demeanor.

His muscles relaxed at the sound of my voice and his features softened, only to smooth over into a blank emotionless mask. "Phoenix?" his voice was hoarse and shaky, both completely alien characteristics for this perfect, angel-like creature.

"Noah? What's _wrong?_ Please tell me!" I cried, my fingers twitching towards him.

He seemed to notice my repressed urge to comfort him, but instead of shying away in disgust, he began glowing softly, a feature that had been absent since our falling out earlier this week. I chanced a small, nervous smile. "Please, Noah."

I wanted to help him more than I'd ever wanted anything before. It didn't matter that he was a family enemy. It didn't matter that he probably hated my guts. I couldn't bear standing by helplessly while Noah suffered.

"I can't do it anymore, Phoenix. I tried. I'm sorry, but I'm not strong enough," he whispered, the faint glow utterly subsiding as he hung his head. "Selfishness has never been one of my defining qualities before, but that particular trait seems to have resurfaced with a vengeance. I just can't do it anymore."

What was he trying to say?

My heart began to race, my temperature rose to a shocking extreme. I could feel the wispy flames radiating off of my arms. Was he leaving?

_I can't do this anymore_. Was my presence such a disappointment that he had to distance himself from Arizona? Did he feel selfish for leaving the sylph infestation to my coven?

My face contorted into a grimace that could rival even Noah's.

"Don't let me stop you. I understand." It was supposed to sound indifferent, as if his absents would not send me into a catatonic state, but instead it came out as a whimpering plea. I didn't understand, not at all.

Noah's pained frown transformed into one of utter bewilderment, but his eyes did not lose one ounce of the regret that they originally harbored. "You are the reason for all of this, Phoenix! I can't bring myself to dwell on any thought that doesn't revolve around you! Everything in my world was built upon your needs, your safety.

"I've waited my entire life to feel the electricity that you ignited in me, setting my veins alight with warmth. It began thirteen years ago, and it didn't matter that you were just a child…all I cared about was your intoxicating laugh, your knowing smile.

"My duty became to protect you with all of my might. The hold that you had on me, from the very moment I first laid eyes on you, was most unnatural—I was—I am—fully aware of that fact…"

He plunged his thin, long fingers into his unruly hair and fisted a handful of his locks, tugging maniacally as if needing some type of physical pain to snap him out of his revelation. Even so, he could rival Paris for his beauty.

I once again felt the urge to cross the two foot chasm that separated us and gently untangle his fingers from his hair. The fact that I was to blame for his loss of sanity was like a dagger plunged deep into my heart. It would be better for him when he's away from Arizona. I had noted his use of the past tense and knew that he could never care for me as he once did. He would be able to move on and shake the last thirteen years of his life off as if it was some sick, warped nightmare.

As for me, I would once again be alone, but with the added bonus of knowing that I could have been happy. If only I would have trusted in this man who was so perfect for me.

One week of angst and confusion was all it would take to ruin my chances at ever falling in love with—or possessing any type of romantic affection for—another guy. Cayden was a prime example of this fact. I needed to love somebody besides Madeline; at least now I loved Noah as well, even if it was unrequited.

And I would forever be in love with Noah. My heart ripped from my chest, as if trying to capture Noah's attention. It would leave with him today and I would continue on as I always have—like a stone statue frozen in time. A tear ran down my cheek, followed by another, and my body began to shake uncontrollably.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please, Noah! I can trust you…I can change. Please just don't hate me when you leave. I can't bare it!" I choked out in soft sobs.

"Hate you? It's an impossibility! The very second we returned you to your family in Arizona thirteen years ago I have been meticulously scouring the general area, desperately trying to keep you safe. Any creature that could so much as give you a nose blood, I crushed before it had a chance to come within twenty miles of you! Why do you think that your family has to travel so far from home to go on raids? Because I don't trust them enough to protect you properly! The only competent one is Karlstadt! And now with the sylphs in Tucson…" he trailed off, lost in a memory. His eyes burned with passion—but I didn't dare to hope that he so much as lusted after me, not anymore.

My sobs had momentarily subsided. My eyes were now wide as saucers, my mouth slightly open in surprise.

"Phoenix, you have no idea how hard you've made this! I wanted to mutate that little, harmless human for being able to touch you, talk to you in confidence—and I know that is **not** _healthy_! I wanted to hurt him because you allowed him a chance to make you feel special.

"I'm sorry that I can't leave you alone! I can't sit by and watch you charm the entire student body… the entire world, a feat you could easily accomplish if you wanted to. I can't pretend that I'm unaffected by your presences any longer! Phoenix, I LOVE YOU! It may be the freakiest, strangest love imaginable, but it's also the strongest. I love you!"

And with that he closed the gap between us in one quick, strong stride and roughly pulled my head towards his, finding my stiff, stunned lips easily.

His arms snaked around my body, grasping me tighter to his chest. He tangled his fingers in my hair and tilted my head to the side, his lips moving rhythmically against mine.

He had grabbed my bottom lip between his, sucking gently as I stared at him in confusion, my body relaxing into his toned form. It took me a second to react, but when I did it was with a vigor that neither of us expected. Not that he minded. I enthusiastically wrapped my arms around his neck, letting my fingers creep up into his golden locks. I pulled his head back and let my tongue trace his upper lip as I pressed myself closer to his chest.

He groaned in pleasure and let one of his hands drop to my waist, his touch leaving trails of electricity in its wake. I shuddered into him, pleading with him to continue. I needed more of his touch; I needed as much contact as possible.

Sensing my desire, he crushed his lips on top of mine with no hesitation, no reserve—exactly what I wanted. His lips moved with mine as he parted my mouth open and tangled our tongues together. Now it was my turn to groan. I felt his smile as he moved his attentions to my lower lip, biting it gently.

The temptation was just too much. I had to be closer to him, even though the current proximity left little room to maneuver. Still, there were ways.

I hitched my leg over his hip and plunged my tongue into his mouth. He grabbed my other leg and wrapped it around his waist, fully supporting me as we stumbled into the house. He thrust me against the hallway wall, freeing his hands so that they could explore every inch of my body. I moaned as he pulled his lips away from mine only to replace them on my neck. He flicked his tongue along my collar bone making me smile with delight.

I felt his hands creep under my camisole, gently massaging their way to my breast. I urged him on by arching my back into his grip. A tremor ran down his spine as my new position thrust me into his impressive hard on, my thin hip huggers hardly offering much of a barrier. Amazing!

"Fuck, Phoenix…that feel so good!" he murmured into my ear, his entire being emanating rays of light. I smiled at his pleasure.

His fingers found my breast, lightly grazing the out edge before he lost control and began to roughly knead them, his thumb rubbing over my erect nipples. I threw my head back against the wall with a thrilled moan. Flames exploded, like a supernova, from my skin—not hot enough to burn anything, but hot enough to make our hearts race faster.

The flames curled around our bodies, warming us with their tingling wisps, adding to the electricity already flowing between us. I rhythmically rubbed my center along Noah's erection, it was my natural instinct—and apparently he liked it. His hips buckled into mine, but I silenced his groan with my lips, fire and light beams still swirling around us.

With one swift motion, he once again supported my weight. I moved my lips to his neck as he searched for the living room couch. His scent was intoxicating, better than anything I'd ever smelt before. I planted soft kisses that trailed from his ear to his shoulder and was able to make two passes before he gently lowered me onto the oversized couch. He crawled on top of me, supporting his own weight with his left hand so as not to crush my body. I refused to untangle my legs from his waist, so instead I reclaimed his pouty lips, my favorite attribute of his…although there was a certain other part of his anatomy that was closing in on the number one slot. I pushed myself closer to his hard on, receiving the same elated moan as I had before.

His hand slide underneath me and rubbed my back as our lips worked against each other, perfectly in sync. It was heaven! Our labored breathing caused the flames to pulsate about us in an elaborate light show, a definite mood setter.

He pulled away from my mouth after a few seconds and trailed kisses down my neck, until he reached my breasts. He softly nuzzled his nose into my heaving chest before resuming his kisses. "Noah!" I whimpered in ecstasy. "I love you!" It just came out.

He stopped all movement, but his radiance doubled. That had to be a good sign, right? Even so, I bit my lip in anticipation, allowing the flames to die away. I clung closer to his body, but now it was as an act of sincerity rather than a plea for contact—though I still craved more.

"You love me?" Noah's hoarse, yet still bell-like, voice rang.

I nodded, still biting my lips. "I do."

The smile that spread across Noah's radiant face was a sight that almost caused my heart to stop. He was beautiful…and he _loved me, too_.

All of the lunacy and madness that had filled his eyes just a few minutes prior was completely overtaken by lust, passion, and…love. It transformed his visage into that of an angel's.

He gathered me up into a tight embrace, breathing in the scent of my hair as he lay on top of me. "I am so in love with you that it hurts." And with that he kissed me so gently—yet so sensually—that my eyes rolled back into my head. I clung to him fiercely; it seemed as if I would never let go. Come to think of it, I probably wouldn't.

*****Whew! Like I said—wicked different than anything I've ever written. This was the first hardcore make-out scene I've ever written so I hope you liked it…I need feedback good or bad! **


	11. Noah POV: Visions of Fire and Porcelain

******READ NOTE BEFORE STORY!!!! :**

**I wanted to explain a few of the references that are made in this story as well:**

** Professor Karlstadt was a real historical figure during the protestant reformation.**

"Much madness is divinest sense--to a discerning eye" is by far my favorite poem written by Emily Dickinson.

**"Keep your hands at the level of your eyes" is a reference to the Phantom of the Opera who is the creepest stalker of all time in my opinion. It's supposed to prevent you from being strangled because your hands are blocking your throat. Just a Jeopary fact if you're wondering.**

Lamont Cranston is a wicked creepy vigilante from a 1930s radioshow called The Shadow. I know, really obscure reference, but totally fitting.

**NOTE: In an attempt to defend Noah's psychotic behavior, I've written this chapter. It's the longest chapter I've ever written weighing in at 12,800 words. In other words it's extremely long. It picks up the day after Noah and Phoenix car conversation, when the kissing bet is almost fulfilled and follows to the love confession last chapter. Enjoy and please review!! I wrote 12,800 words for you!!! REVIEW!! It's not as repetetive as it sounds and the pieces of the story fall into place.**

**Also I updated my profile to include pictures of Darius and Genevieve! They're my best matches ye so check it out!**

**Noah's POV: Visions of Fire and Porcelain **

I leaned against the side of the school, immersed in the shadows cast by the slowly emerging sun. I was the first person to arrive, but I couldn't bring myself to care. A certain bet agreed upon hardly twenty-four hours ago had me glowing like a Christmas tree, literally.

The look on Phoenix's face when I disappeared yesterday was priceless—a true Kodak moment. Her jaw had dropped on its own accord and her eyes were bugging out of her skull as if futilely searching for something I wouldn't allow them to find. Her thin body had sulked in dismay after a few moments, under the impression that I was long gone rather than standing twenty feet away from her. I had to suppress a chuckle as she slowly scurried back into the driver's seat, seriously confused and stunned. She would make good on the bet, after all I had beat her fair and square…I would most definitely enjoy my reward, as would she.

************

After she pulled back onto the road, driving with the skill of a pro (a complete turn around from the twenty car pile up she had almost caused just minutes before), I crouched down, gained momentum and took off into the air—yet again—with one swoop of my wings. _Her shock must have worn off_, I thought_, so there would be no need to reappear and help her drive home safely_. Dismay washed over me momentarily before being beaten back by reason. I would probably end up with a skewer up my ass if I went anywhere near the Faryn household.

My wings propelled me through the air with such force that the barren desert wasteland below transformed into a kaleidoscope of neutral colors. Pretty much the most boring kaleidoscope ever invented. How could anybody enjoy living here? It was like a replication of hell spouting up in the Mojave Desert, definitely no place for such an angelic creature like Phoenix.

I had always scoffed at the living conditions that Firebirds resided in. They were always the least hospitable environments chosen seemingly at random. It wasn't as if Arizona was a hotbed for black magic, although as of late it had become one. Apparently the Faryn clan had completely missed all the tell tale signs of a sylph infestation, making me shudder at the idea that these stubborn, incompetent creatures were Phoenix's only protection. Not counting me, that is.

The past thirteen years had been pure torture for me. Unable to bear the idea of distancing myself from Phi, I had abandoned my life in Boston for a life of playing guardian angel for the most innocent, amazing creature imaginable. It was the best decision of my existence, but I had made a promise to myself to lurk in the shadows, allowing Phoenix ample time to grow and develop as normal as any mythical creature can when thrust into a human world. I was her secret protector and I did a damn good job of it, too. The Faryn's had no idea that I was behind the sudden decline of black magic activity in the Southwest. They just assumed that their reputations as 'big bad Firebirds' had scared all of their adversaries away—Karlstadt was the only exception to this generalization. He would, from time to time, steal my thunder and intercept a particularly feisty troll that I had been tracking. Karlstadt was the only reason why I just didn't storm into their home and kidnap Phoenix…again. He was smart and intuitive with a reputation for being a liberator on practically every continent.

On occasion, he would turn his sights to human adversaries, a trait that most Firebirds lack and one that I completely admired in this wise, old phoenix bird. Humans could be just as deadly as sylphs. I had once heard a rumor, while traveling through Germany on one of my brother's research trips, that Karlstadt had played a rather large role in the Protestant Reformation.

Apparently he had developed quite the bad reputation as he played off both sides in order to incite rebellion, yet fend off bloodshed. But humans can never do one without the other. So after much trepidation Professor Karlstadt, as he was known, faked his death and left the country having successfully deteriorated both the Holy Roman Empire and the Papacy's power over the people. I felt for him, I really did.

_Always one to defy the papacy, aren't you Karlstadt_, I chuckled to myself as I swooped down towards our secluded desert hideaway…I mean home.

With a soft thud, I landed and sauntered quite smugly through the front door, still riding a high over the prospects of being close to Phoenix again tomorrow, closer than I've ever dreamed.

"Wow, high school dropout already? Three hours, what a record. I'd like my ten dollars anytime you're ready," my brother Darius said, glancing over a particularly large tome propped precariously in his lap. **(picture on my profile)**

His jet black hair fell in disarray in front of his eyes, causing him to flick his head to the side every so often in order to clear his line of sight. I chuckled at him, remembering his sentiments earlier this morning: _Have fun in hell, Noah. Ten bucks says you don't last a day_. Well, at least I had won one bet today—the better of the two in my opinion.

I reached into my jean pockets and retrieved a crinkled bill which I tossed over to Darius. He caught it deftly without even glancing up. I smiled. Darius and my sister Genevieve were pretty much my saving grace in this deserted wasteland. They supported my inexplicable compulsion to protect Phoenix whole-heartedly, uprooting themselves from the four-season glory of Boston to live with me in this perpetual summer. I didn't know how they could tolerate it. Any place that brought me in such close proximity to Phoenix was paradise for me, but otherwise I would sooner choose death over thirteen years of desert seclusion. My appreciation for their selfless act could never be repaid in full.

Darius' eyes retired from the text and reposition themselves on me. He quirked his eyebrow and lowered his book further. "You look…happy?" His statement turned into a question as he expressed an idea that seemed impossible to him. I rolled my eyes. Ah, yes, for the perpetually dour Noah happiness just didn't exist.

A tiny head poked out from around the corner, revealing a mess of flowing bronze waves and cream colored skin. "Noah, happy? Ha, who's your dealer, Dar?" Genevieve always found it hilarious to make highly vulgar human references. Drugs and 'gang bangings' were just a few of her favorites. **(picture of Evie on my profile)**

"I smile and the sky begins to crumble! It's not like I committed a crime!" I exclaimed, the forcefulness in my voice marred by amusement.

"Oh, my goodness! He _is_ smiling! And he's lit up like a 7/11 at three in the morning!" she squealed, her wide green eyes, the exact same shade as mine, expanding to an impossible size.

"Damn it…give you three guesses why, Evie," Darius mumbled, reluctantly.

Evie brighten tenfold and came racing towards me, throwing her arms around my neck in one of her classic embraces. I staggered a bit in surprise before curling my arms around her back. "I knew it! I knew it! She talked to you, didn't she? She didn't try to bust a cap in your ass?" Seriously, where did such a tiny, sweet little thing like Evie learn such obnoxious sayings?

"Well, she threw a few fireballs my way, but warmed up to me fairly quickly," I informed them, surprised that my chipper mood was so transparent.

"Wait, so she did try to attack or otherwise incapacitate you?" Now it was Darius' turn to brighten. I frowned. Wow, way to be a prick, Darius! This was not like him at all.

"She stormed away from me when I confronted her in the quad, but I'm not so easily defeated," I shot him a filthy look, disappointed with his lack of faith in me. After all, I'd been planning this day for thirteen years! "I sent her a very subtle, classy message through the Cortexium frequency and all was well. We went for a drive and I explained everything to her. She completely understands now, no worries."

Okay so it was a slight fabrication, alright a downright right fictional fairytale, but Evie would definitely not approve of the 'inappropriate' daydream I had conjured up for Phoenix.

"So when exactly did she hurl fireballs at you're face?" Darius inquired.

"Er…somewhere in between the vision of a particularly heated lip-lock and me blocking the way to her car as she tried to make her escape," I cracked seeing no way around this topic.

"_That's_ what you call subtle! Damn it, Noah! What the hell are you trying to do? Scare the girl senseless?" Evie snapped her thin hand gesticulating in front of my face for effect.

Darius was keeling over in a fit of laughter. "That's CLASSIC!"

"Darius, don't even start!" Evie hissed before turning her attentions back to me. "Why would you _do_ that!!!"

"I panicked! My secret weapon was going to be the fact that she wouldn't recognize me straight away, but it only took her a few seconds to realize who I was! I had to pull out the big guns, and granted it wasn't the smartest move imaginable; she was a bit taken aback. She stormed out of the history classroom, so I had to follow her and make amends. That's were the flame throwing came into play, but eventually she calmed down and we were able to have a nice, civil conversation. I swear, Phoenix is by far the most understanding being ever created." I left out the part about our Las Vegas moment, not daring to push Genevieve any farther.

"So, she doesn't hate you and she isn't going to go running to the Elders?" Evie asked hopefully.

"I doubt it."

"HA!! In your face!" she screamed, pointing her willowing finger at Darius. "Fork it over, Dar!"

With a perturbed huff, Darius chucked the crinkled ten dollar bill that I had given him just minutes before directly at Evie's face. She plucked it out of the air with one skilled flick of her wrist and flashed a dazzling smile in Darius' direction. "Thank you very much."

"Thanks a lot guys. Betting on the odds of a Firebird vs. Seraph showdown. Really nice!" I shook my head in faux disappointment.

"Actually, we were betting on the chances of you coming home with your backside deep fried," Evie corrected, gently smoothing out the bill and folding it neatly into her pocket.

"Even better." I gave Genevieve an affectionate nuggy, which caused her to shoot daggers at me (her hair was sacred) before ambling out of the room. "I'll be in my studio if you need me," I called over my shoulder.

Darius reclaimed his decaying volume entitled _A History of Sylphs and Sirens _while Genevieve softly pattered back to the nursery. She was the only person in existence who could make such a vast array of plants thrive in the arid conditions of the Mojave.

I plopped down in front of my easel with sudden inspiration. Furiously, I stroked my paintbrush across the canvas with visions of fire and porcelain skin dancing in front of my eyes.

********************

I was snapped out of my memory a half hour later, stunned to find the campus swarming with students. I spotted Phoenix's Firebird rolling into an empty space about five hundred feet in front of me. I noticed her scan the crowd anxiously and smiled to myself, hoping that I was the reason for her sudden interest in the student population. Of course, this might just be a ritual of hers, though I liked my explanation better. Regardless, I was making it my mission in life to find out as much about Phoenix as I possibly could, preferably from the source herself.

She rolled her eyes and shot an annoyed, mildly amused glare at her friend who was currently in an odd limbo between the front and backseat, her jean-clad legs splayed wildly a foot away from Phoenix's face. I exhaled a short chortle that startled a scrawny pre-pubescent boy, unable to suppress my immense pleasure any longer. This catharsis allowed me to keep my severely conspicuous glow under control.

With a mischievous smirk, Phoenix grabbed her friend's legs and shoved her entire body into the back seat before bursting out in laughter. Madeline resurfaced a few seconds later with a grin on her face. What goons!

I couldn't contain myself any longer. My patience had stretched to the limit within the past thirteen years and there simply wasn't anymore to go around. So I pushed off of the wall and shoved my way through the crowd, earning quite a few sneers and gawks as I passed.

"I guess you don't have to search the crowd anymore," I heard Madeline say through the glass of the Pontiac. My radiance increased infinitesimally, though I was certain I would have been a blazing ball of light had I not been expending so much effort on stifling the light rays.

Phoenix's head shot up and her eyes meet mine, widened, and then scrunched up in confusion. I smiled warmly, hoping that I had not been too presumptuous to believe that we were now friends. Only one way to find out—I waved my hand, signaling her to join me.

Her eyebrows shot up into her thick mane of curls. She turned to her friend as if she was a dying man and Madeline could offer her the elixir of everlasting life. "Maddie, do NOT leave my side. I repeat DO NOT leave him any opportunity to make good on his offer," she screeched.

Hmm, _offer?_ That word contradicted her entire command. 'Offer' had a positive connotation, perhaps she wasn't as unwilling as she would have Madeline—and me—believe.

I decided to keep it light and allow her a chance to warm up to my presence. I commended her on the amount of understanding she possessed, seriously surprised that she had not sent her family crash down upon me when she realized that I was her ex-kidnapper. Granted I had a good reason for the heist, but still, lord knows what lies the Faryn clan had been filling her with. I decided to joke with her. "I can hear absolutely everything you're saying right now, Phoenix. Your windows aren't soundproof."

Her face contorted into a surprised grimace. Apparently she _was _unaware of the fact the she wasn't driving an armored vehicle and 1969 Pontiac Firebirds did not come equipped with soundproof, bulletproof glass.

She smiled sheepishly, the grimace still clearly visible, and yanked Madeline into the front seat in an act of desperation. While Phoenix turned to gage my reaction to her unceremonious—and downright hilarious—behavior, Madeline winked at me. I smirked smugly. Phoenix's partner in crime had just hopped the border, and the best part was Phi didn't know it yet.

"Be strong, PhiPhi. We all do stupid things in our lives. Normally, your degree of stupidity is accompanied with a drunken rave, but hey we can't all be rock stars." With that, Maddie energetically jumped out of the car, forcing Phoenix to do the same (albeit with less enthusiasm), and turned to me with a chipper smile.

"Hey, Noah. Let me just tell you how impressed I am with your serious supernatural skills! Big fan…oh, is that Cliff? Sorry, Phi, I gotta go. Cliff and I have to develop our yearbook pictures before school starts." I could safely say that Madeline Masen had worked her way into my favorite persons list. With one guilty smile that was more like a frown than anything else, she trotted over to a group of hulking jocks battering her eyelashes at the boy who I took to be Cliff. She waved at us feverishly, apparently soothed by the distance between Phoenix and herself, before turning to follow the boy into the building.

Phoenix looked heated. No, she looked flat out pissed. I tried casual again.

"Wow, your friend seriously left you hanging. She needs to take a refresher class in wing-woman 101." It sort of worked. Instead of looking as though she wanted to hunt down Madeline and melt her entire roll of photos, she dropped her eyes to the ground and expelled a half-hearted chuckle. I sighed. This wasn't going as I had planned.

"Look, Phoenix, I can see that our little deal yesterday morning makes you very uncomfortable. I'm not going to ask you to do anything you don't want to do. That's not the point in my being here. I want to protect you from anything supernatural and otherwise that threatens your well being. That includes me, if I'm acting too forward. I'm sorry. You don't have to kiss me." _But I really wish you would,_ I added internally. Needing some type of physical contact if I wasn't going to have the intimacy that I so desperately craved, I reached down and caressed her soft chin, tilting it up so that she was forced to look me in the eyes. After a moment of silence, I became concerned. Was she so frightened of me that my touch had sent her into shock? After all, I had kidnapped her. But hadn't we got past that yesterday? Don't freak her out, I thought. "What, no snappy comeback?"

She furrowed her brow as if shuffling through a list of possible retorts. Her forehead smoothed over as she tried to feign a nonchalant attitude, "I don't need you to protect me. If I recall, I was the one who burned your angel ass yesterday in this very spot."

I burst out in laughter, so relieved that she could joke about something that held such weight. She had forgiven me on some level or another. This somewhat pathetic, though absolutely adorable, attempt at witticism was my salvation. I decide not to point out the fact that this wasn't the _exact _same parking spot as yesterday, but my fresh liberation made me forget about my 'keep it casual' plan. I slide my hand down to the nape of her neck and twirled a strand of her vibrant red hair around my finger.

"I'll pay the price of a few third degree burns any day if it means having a few seconds of physical contact with you."

"I think we're in for a little déjà vu in T-minus three seconds." Her lackadaisical threats only made me chuckle harder as I continued to run my fingers through her soft locks. Again, her words clashed with her body language; she had subconsciously leaned towards me, apparently enjoying the close contact. I fought back an explosion of light that was threatening to surface at this realization.

"No amount of physical damage would keep me away from you, Phoenix. Nothing."

I must admit that I was toying with her a bit, gauging her response as I whispered into her ear, my hand still lingering on her neck. She wasn't trying to set me on fire, so I threw my inhibitions to the wind and lowered my head toward hers. "Let me just say sorry for what I'm about to do."

I nuzzled her ear and lightly ran my lips over her cheek, giving her the opportunity to back out at anytime, but frantically hoping that she wouldn't. I stopped once my trek reached its destination, and glanced down into her deep jade-colored eyes, looking for any sign of doubt. A huge, goofy smile spread across my face when I found no indication of her wavering intentions. I must have looked like such a fool, but I didn't care.

Phoenix, on the other hand, was a goddess among peasants, me being the latter. She had no idea how beautiful…how sexy she looked. Her lips were slightly parted and her cheeks were flushed, staining her porcelain skin to a striking rose hue. It seemed surreal that I was being allowed this gift. Never had I imagined actually holding her in my arms as anything more than her protector, though I had secretly longed for it. She was stunning. I felt me grin grow embarrassingly larger as I tilted my head back toward hers.

"Phoenix! Hey." My lips were just inches away from hers when that obnoxious, overly excited voice caused her to snap her head up and glance around for the culprit.

Really! Come on! Was this some sick joke that karma decided to play on me? I wasn't laughing, that's for sure. A lanky teenager with dark, unkempt hair waved enthusiastically at Phoenix who…_smiled_ back at him! She smiled!

All the confidence that I had developed was completely crushed. She seemed happy to see this unexceptional boy, not at all dismayed at the fact that he had interrupted a fairly intimate moment. I was stunned into silence, not sure how to take this turn of events.

"Hey, Cayden. How are you?" she said was an enthusiasm that made my heart stop.

"Good, really good. This is for you, I thought you might need an early morning caffeine pick-me-up." My jaw tightened into a hard line as this cheeky little prick handed her an enormous Starbucks coffee. She would probably go into shock after drinking that much caffeine. Who did this kid think he was?

"Oh, wow. Thanks so much!" She was flirting with him, wasn't she? Didn't I feel like a fool! The glow that had overtaken me during my short-lived ecstasy had completely vanished, leaving my sheathed in overcast.

She looked at me in that moment, her jubilant smile turn down into an anxious frown. Maybe this idiot boy was just a friend of hers. Maybe not. "Umm…this is Noah Wilder; he's an old friend, but new to the school. Noah, this is Cayden Maloire,"

If the former was true, then I should at least make an effort to be cordial. I extended my hand towards the child, feigning (and utterly failing) to seem sincere. The boy looked at me with such shock and surprise you'd think he hadn't realized I was in the middle of kissing this goddess seconds before he interrupted us.

He grabbed my hand enthusiastically and threw me a goofy smile." Nice to meet you." I nodded indifferently. He didn't seem to be threatened by me, so perhaps he was just a friend, though I hadn't seen Phoenix talk to anybody besides Madeline yesterday.

The boy turned back to Phoenix who was sporting an endearingly furious express. I could only imagine what she was thinking about.

"So, Phoenix, I'm so excited for our date on Friday. You're seriously gonna have a blast!"

WHAT!!!! DATE?? Since when do friends go on dates? I'm going to throw up!

My nostrils flared and I'm sure my eyes darkened to black angry spheres.

"I'm sure I will," she said, a bit half-heartedly. She had agreed to date this boy, but was about to kiss me? Had I seduced her against her will? It hadn't seemed like that at the time.

What _irony!_ I slave away to ensure this beautiful creatures safety and she chooses a scrawny little human above me. My hope was trampled, my heart ripped out of my chest. If she wanted this child, than I couldn't stand in her way, but the—jealous? Was that the emotion?—raked through my system like a poison. The bell rang, as though signaling the end of my crash and burn morning. It couldn't get worse, though I'm sure karma would find a way to make my suffering triple.

"Oh, that's the bell. I'll see you guys later." And with that, the love of my life walked away, getting lost in the crowd. Story of my freaking life!

*****************

The universe had obviously plotted against me; there can't possibly be any other explanation for my horrendous luck. I somberly sulked to English class, planning on wallowing in my misery and plot ways to win Phoenix's love. Karma, my new found enemy, would have it otherwise it seemed, as Cayden Maloire, the last person on earth that I wished to see right now, strolled into the classroom wearing an obnoxiously large grin. He made his way down the aisle to my left, recognized me and threw up the peace sign before plopping down three seats in front of me.

_You can't be serious!!!!_ I glared at him, hoping that my stare would be enough to stop his heart. Then I realized that it could if I adjusted the wavelengths to the right frequency. I vacillated between staying conspicuous or frying this kid's innards before deciding on the former. There's no way in hell Phoenix would forgive me if I killed off her boyfriend.

The teacher droned on about importance of Shakespeare, while I plotted murder like Macbeth. I'm sure this mediocre, fresh out of college teacher would appreciate the text to life connections was making.

As a keeper of the peace, my sudden surge of violent intentions scared me a bit. If I plunged the classroom into complete darkness and shot a few gamma rays in Cayden's direction, his death could easily be blamed on electrocution from the faulty wiring of the light directly above his head. Or I could conjure up a few deranged and disturbing Cortexium visions that would slowly drive this intruding child to insanity.

_Or I could stop being such a psychotic freak and let the chips fall as they may_, I reasoned, trying to shake off my vicious edge.

At the sound of the bell, I quickly leapt from my seat and scurried to the door, not giving myself an opportunity to act upon on of my various plots.

The next two periods dragged on as I dwelled upon Phoenix and the turns our relationship had taken within the past forty-eight hours. I mentally flipped through all of the roles I had played: p_rotector, enemy, friend, almost lover_. Could I never be her trusted companion? Someone she could talk to, love unconditionally, and spend the rest of her life with?

No, probably not. Life sucks and then you die. Except in my case life drags on for a couple thousand years before the relief of death has mercy on you.

Then the defense mechanisms kicked in. I'd only ever seen Phoenix talk to Madeline and Cayden, though their relationship seemed to be new (a person wouldn't drop five bucks on a frothy caffinated beverage if they were already a member of the inner circle). Perhaps Phoenix hid from the human world, feeling like an outsider because of what she was.

This thought disturbed me even though it was meant to soften the blow of her rejection. Why would she hide from the world? Such a brilliant, beautiful creature should never feel inferior! I was enraged.

Desperate to verify my theory, I turned to the overly muscled jock on the side of me—Cliff, I think his name was—and blatantly asked him, "Hey, what's the deal with Phoenix Faryn?"

Not exactly one of my finer moments, but the curiosity and desperation boiling inside me drove me to extreme measures.

Cliff looked taken aback, but recovered soon enough. "She's really quiet. I don't think I've ever heard her say more than two words. She sits at my lunch table, but only talks to Maddie." His face lit up as he said Madeline's name. I rolled my eyes, impatient at his diversion from the topic. "I guess if Maddie is friends with her, than she must be okay. Some people think she's stuck up, but I just think she doesn't want anything to do with this school. It's understandable, but still, it would be nice if she talked once and awhile. It kinda makes me uncomfortable."

"It don't matter what she has to say, Cliff. That smokin' hot body does all the talkin' for her," said an imbecilic scoundrel. I turned to glower at him, the intensity of my glare causing the blood to drain out of the scumbags face. How dare he talk about a woman like that, especially Phoenix!

"Shut up, Landon. That's totally not cool," Cliff warned. I was beginning to like this man. He, at least, had some sense of courtesy.

"Just 'cause you wanna bang her best friend doesn't mean that _she's _off limits." The lights flickered, pulsing in synchronicity with my anger. Just a few ultraviolet rays wouldn't hurt, would they?

A gigantic, meaty fist flew through the air and landed with a muffled thud against the side of Landon's head. "Don't you dare, douche bag!"

I nodded in approval. Pretty cool guy, this Cliff.

"Sorry man. I know Maddie's off limits. She's your girl, totally chill. But Phoenix…man she's on fire! Mmm-mm, I would tap that any day of the week!" Anger boiled within me. What was this idiot's glitch? This kid was going to get schooled in the art of want-not-to-say after class!

And what do you know? The bell rang perfectly on cue causing a menacing grin to spread across my face.

I roughly strode to the door so that I was directly in back of Landon. The hallways were overcrowded, but Landon was making this easy for me. He glanced suspiciously from side to side before slipping through a maintenance door that led to a long dark hallway. I trailed after him a few seconds later and followed the hallway until I reached the boiler room which was overflowing with plumes of smoke. Landon was a fucking pot head! It sickened me to think that such a loser thought that he had a chance with Phoenix!

Landon looked up as I entered the room. At first he seemed startled, but recognition flitted across his face and he smiled! He _smiled_!!! _Not for much longer_, I corrected internally.

"Hey man, you wanna light up?" he asked as he stood up and reached into his pocket pulling out another blunt. Disgusting.

I felt my nostrils flare and before I realized what I was doing my hands were wrapped tightly around Landon's throat. He kicked his feet and struggled against my grip, but didn't have a chance of freeing himself. My anger was dangerous, but I would try to contain myself. I was a protector not a killer, but when it came to Phoenix those lines blurred into an indistinguishable haze.

"You're a repulsive excuse for a human!" I hissed. "You have no right…NO RIGHT… to talk about Phoenix Faryn like she's some type of sex toy! Do you hear me, you FUCKER? She's beautiful, brilliant, kind and you talk about here like she's just a piece of meat. Don't touch her, don't even think about her!" I hesitated.

What if Phoenix was friends with this imbecile, though I highly doubted it? I didn't want her around such a vile creature, but I also didn't want to make her feel as though she was being alienated. "Don't talk to her unless she talks to you first and even then, if you say even one inappropriate comment you'll regret it!"

I allowed an evil glint of light to shine in my eyes and slammed his head against the wall to prove my point.

Landon nodded furiously, tears streaming down his boyish face. I grinned. What a weak coward. He was so below Phoenix that the thought of her giving him the time of day was laughable. I tossed him to the ground and slammed the door as I exited the boiler room.

I walked into Euro class before the bell rang, before Phoenix arrived. It only took me approximately two minutes to scare Landon shitless, though my anger hadn't subsided. I was seething with hatred…and jealous…as I threw myself into my seat, still dwelling on the horrible things that scumbag had said about Phi.

She was gorgeous and desirable, that was obvious. I shuddered to think of all the scoundrels in this school who fantasized about taking advantage of her in filthy ways. I'm certain that my angry disposition scared half the class, but I didn't care.

"Ahh, Miss Faryn, are we feeling better?" My head shot up at Mr. Larken's sentiments. She was beautiful. My anger almost dissipated. Almost. Then I remembered that my burning desire for her was not reciprocated.

"Yup, it was a freak fever. No idea where it came from," She answered the teacher and then slowly made her way to her seat. My eyes smoldered as I stared at her, but she didn't glance up from the floor.

Without thinking, I turned around and muttered, "How's your boyfriend?" I was such an idiot! It wasn't like she belonged to me. She could date whoever she wanted to, but still it had hurt when she chose him over me.

"He's not my boyfriend!" she retorted. I quirked an eyebrow at her. She was going on a date with him and had been about to kiss me. I was so confused. Did she normally go around kissing guys even when she wasn't on the losing end of a bet.

"Oh, so you just get around a lot then." It came out as a statement rather than a question. And it was an idiotic statement! Of course she didn't! She wasn't like that! I instantly regretted opening my mouth in the first place.

She started, obviously offended. Her eyes burned with anger. "Oh, yes. I'm a grade-A slut."

_That's not what I meant!!!_ She was a goddess! How could I say anything that could be mistaken as an insult of that caliber? Idiot!! I was no better than Landon.

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" I couldn't manage to subdue the harsh edge in my voice and I hated myself for it. My jealousy was getting the best of me and I was lashing out at the one person I never wanted to hurt. What a royal screw up I am! I waited thirteen years to talk to her and I'm already fighting with her a day later.

She was thoroughly taken aback by this point, and rightly so. "Really, because that's exactly how it sounded like to me! Please enlighten me on the workings of Noah Wilder's mind."

Oh, she would be enlightened alright. Then maybe she would realize that I was jealous beyond belief! My self-loathing slid to the back burner as my self-defense mechanisms kicked in again. Sure she was the girl of my dreams, but she led me on like a golden retriever. She deserved to be confronted in a civilized conversation.

Yeah, right. Like I could pull that one off. I could hardly keep my temper in check, but it's the thought that counts, right? Venting angrily worked just as well.

"Phoenix, I really…I can't explain it in subdued whispers during Euro class. Pretend to faint." It was a stroke of genius.

"What?" she asked, utterly confused.

"Raise your body temperature and fall out of your chair. Faint!" Jesus, she was being ridiculously stubborn.

She rolled her eyes before theatrically throwing her hand onto her forehead and flopping out of her seat. She was adorable…I mean, a total and complete tease. _Man, I'm whipped_.

Now it was my turn.

"Oh, my God!!! Mr. Larken, she needs to go to the nurse." I filled my voice with as much surprised and conviction as I possibly could, but a hint of amusement slide in. Phoenix was sprawled on the ground, her hair mussed around her face. She was a horrible actress, but nobody could say that she wasn't stunning. I had to touch her, make sure she wasn't just a mirage.

I slowly swept away the strands of fly away locks, allowing my fingers to linger on her warm skin. I worked this into the charade. "She's burning up!!!" Actually, she should be legally dead by now—what was she 108o?

Mr. Larken reacted in possibly the most hilarious manner imaginable. He jumped about three feet in the air, slapping his hands on his face like that kid from _Home Alone_ and rushed over to phone. "Oh, dear! Oh, dear! I'll call the nurse for assistance!"

"No. I can bring her. It'll save time," I said before he had time to pick up the receiver. I scooped Phoenix up, basking in the touch of her tingling hot skin.

Mr. Larken approved of the idea, but I didn't bother waiting for him to finish his sentence. I kicked the door shut, not really caring if it was little rude, though I'd probably apologize the next day. Right now, I'd lay everything on the line for Phoenix and get a few answers myself.

The resonating crush hadn't even subsided before Phoenix's eyes flashed open and she demanded to be put down. Truthfully, I didn't ever want to let go, but I knew that she had quite a temper so I decided not to test it. Unfortunately, I underestimated that temper.

"Owww! Phoenix, I was going to let you down! What did you do that for?" I exclaimed mostly out of surprise and frustration. Her flames hadn't hurt me; they couldn't, not unless she put some serious effort into heating them to at least two thousand degrees.

"That was for calling me a whore!" she snapped.

When was she going to catch on! I was in love with her! She was the farthest thing from a whore in my mind. She just happened to have every guy in the world lined up on her doorstep, vying for her attention. I threw my hands into the air in frustration.

"I did NOT call you a whore! You're insufferable!"

"Then why did you bother coming to Arizona? It's not like you were obligated!!"

Why had I come to Arizona? Didn't she realize that she was the reason I got up in the morning? That the sun was worthless to me and if I could have my way she would be the center of the solar system? That she was already the center of my universe?

"You don't get it, do you?!!! For the last thirteen years, I've been trying to find any excuse possible to come and see you again. You have me under a spell that I can't break free of, a spell you cast over me when you were five!" I couldn't take it anymore. She would know everything.

"How does that sound normal to you?"

I faltered. I probably sounded like some pedophile stalker creep to her. Well, it couldn't get any worse so I continued.

"Phoenix, the boundaries of reality are pretty much null-and-void in this circumstance, don't you think? You were this young, innocent girl with wit, charm, and compassion. How was I supposed to ignore the fact that you would grow up? Time moves quickly when you don't age!"

"I was five! You can't create an image of a person from the way they were as a child!" She didn't sound as though she was arguing a point. Her voice betrayed a disbelief that flipped the switch for me. She didn't think that I could care for her…that anyone could care for her! It was a blow that I hadn't expected. The only undeniable truth in my world was my love for Phoenix.

"Apparently you're right. I see now that you've grown into a scared girl with serious trust issues!" It was an irrational thing to say. I hadn't followed my own instructions to tell her the whole truth, but she was spitting out such blasphemy that I could no longer be rational.

"You've known me for a day!"

"It doesn't matter. We're the same, Phoenix. I feel this connection with you unlike anything I've ever experienced. Don't even pretend that you don't feel it too." Did she feel the strange magnetic attraction that I felt? She had to! "But it's not even a matter of trusting me. What about that boy Cayden. If he wouldn't have said anything about your date, you would have denied it to the grave. Here you are, this strong, clever, person, and you don't let anybody besides your family see the real you!"

"What an excellent idea! Tell the world I'm a firebird! That would be grounds for a witch hunt." Was she trying to be difficult? Obviously that wasn't what I meant! The whole point of the argument was to get her to realize that she was amazing and that she should let other's—namely me!—bask in her otherworldly presence. This plan was crashing and burning faster than the Hindenburg.

Like the idiot I am, I continued.

"I wasn't talking about your abilities, merely the fact that you don't talk to anyone in this school outside of Madeline. I bet before yesterday you never even talked to Cayden! You don't _trust_ anybody!"

"Maybe you're just upset that I don't trust you." She hit the nail on the head. I was suddenly angry. _Yes I want you to trust me! More than anything in the world! _

And then her words sunk in. She flat out told me that she didn't trust me. I was hurt, so I lashed out. IDIOT!!!

"Grow up, Phoenix. Life is worth absolutely nothing without trust." And I walked out the door, my heart shattering as I heard a stifled sob from behind.

************************

I stalked into our house, throwing Darius an agitated glare that had '_Don't even start with me!' _written all over it. It was a lost cause because he always started with me regardless of my mood.

Evie came fluttering into the living room and plopped herself gracefully onto the oversized suede chair.

"What's the matter Noah?" she asked, sympathy filling her voice. It was impossible to be frustrated at the lack of privacy that this house afforded. Not when my darling little sister was so concern for my well being.

"Is it really that hard to make it through eight hours of school?" Darius asked, a smile lacing his voice. I lividly glowered at him as he shut his book and walked over to perch himself on the arm of Evie's chair.

"You're such a jerk, you know. Can't you see that something's wrong?" A small, appreciative smile crept across my face before disappearing a second later.

I sighed, knowing that I had no choice but to tell them everything that happened, even the intimate almost kiss. It was a byproduct of living together in the middle of nowhere for so long. I trusted Darius and Genevieve completely and I owed it to them to be honest.

I collapsed onto the matching suede sofa and recanted the tragic events of the day.

"You're an idiot you know. She doesn't belong to you. If you ask me, you're being a possessive freak," Evie chimed. It was like she had read my mind, but even so it was a blow to the ego to hear someone else voice those very same sentiments.

"Tough break, but it's for the best. Her family would probably draw and quarter you if they found out that you were talking to her. Do you think she'll tell the clan?" Darius asked.

I had to think for a moment. She was obviously upset with me, but had I angered her enough to betray my presence to her family? "I really don't know. I hope not." Darius frowned. The last thing that he—or any of us for that matter—wanted to do was fight with our fellow guardians.

"I don't think she will." I smiled at Evie. She was ever the optimist.

"Well, it doesn't matter much for right now. The Faryn clan is going down to Tucson. Apparently Phoenix and her brother had a run in with a feisty sylph yesterday. I'm not sure if they can handle it, though. I've been doing some research and sylphs are close relatives to sirens. I think that were talking about some hybrids down south which might explain the extent of the earthquakes. In general, the voice of a sylph is powerful enough to break a few windows at best, but if we're talking about mixed breeding here, a siren-sylph combo would be catastrophic." Darius had relinquished his seat on the armrest and was now pacing the room, a vertical wrinkle furrowed between his brows.

I was quiet for a second, and then I shot up from the sofa. "WHAT?? Phoenix went after the sylph? Is she insane?! This is all my fault! I was the one who told her to check her EMD reader. She could have been killed. I'm such an idiot!!"

Darius raised his eyebrow. "You told her about the disturbances? I've been expending months of effort on this case! Do you realize how much time I've spent researching? I _wanted _this case! The firebirds can't handle it and you know it, but now we have no choice but to stand by and watch them fail, then swoop in after the sylphs regroup. That might take months! You _are _and idiot! For God's sake Noah, I was the one who disabled their EMD!"

"Well, you might have told me that piece of information!" That might have been useful yesterday!

"Like you would have even heard me, you obsessive stalker!" Darius hissed.

"Shut up, Darius!" We were inches away from each other's face, in an intense shouting match. Evie jumped up from her chair and squeezed her tiny body between the tight space between us, shoving us to opposite sides of the room with her palms.

"Alright macho men! Calm the hell down and try to be rational or I'll have to go ape shit on your asses!" Her crude comment inexplicably calmed me down within a few seconds. _Where __**does**__ she learn these things?_

"Good boys! Now, Dar, what exactly are the consequences for us and the Faryns if we let them handle the sylphs?" Evie the mediator asked.

"There's no way that the Firebirds can handle these hybrids. Firebirds great trackers, but they suck at ambushing. They probably don't even realize what they're dealing with. The only chance they have is if they kill off the leader, but _I _don't even know who's leading these creatures. They would need a crazy amount of luck!!" Darius resumed his living room trek.

"Could the Firebirds get hurt?" I piped up, fearful that my folly might jeopardize the safety of Phoenix's family…or worse—Phoenix!! "WAIT! Phoenix isn't going, is she?"

A short, booming laugh filled the room. "Yeah, right! Like the Faryns would trust her in the middle of a battle!" My heart rate calmed as he reassured my worries. "As for the rest of her family, they should be fine—hardly anything can kill them—but they might indivertibly cause a bit of destruction in the Tucson area. It all depends on how well Karlstadt plans out the attack. Still, it adds so much unnecessary trouble for us!"

"Should we try to help them?" Evie asked, unsure.

"They wouldn't accept it," I answered truthfully. The Wilders and the Faryns didn't exactly share a track record for camaraderie. Though I wished I could help, I knew that our presence would only serve to make things worse.

"Noah's right. We have no choice but to wait it out and see how the Firebirds handle the situations. If they don't epic fail, then our job might be easier. We should just make sure that Phoenix stays out of trouble when they leave Friday." Darius was an extremely talented spy, hence how he knew so much about this situation. It was somewhat disturbing, but highly useful.

Of course I would protect Phoenix with my life, but my raging jealous had not yet subsided and now that the conversation was coming to a close, my mind began to wander to all of the horrible things that I had said to her this morning. To add insult to injury, I was now indirectly responsible for almost get her killed yesterday.

I nodded and left the room, needing the cathartic release that could be found by way of painting. Evie gently patted my shoulder in concern, but I didn't dare make eye contact. Her eyes would most definitely be filled with sympathy and love that I didn't deserve. I didn't need to feel any more shame; I had reached my capacity.

********************

My mind was wrapped around Phoenix every second of the day. Every thought was consumed by her seldom seen smile, her smooth skin, and those deep emerald eyes. My vicious words had been spewed out of anger, but the more I thought about it the more I realized that Phoenix was not exactly a social butterfly—which was a thought that sadden me. The idea that she found herself remotely inadequate was sacrilege to the highest degree! And I had added fuel to the flame!

I kept my eyes peeled for her the next morning, arriving to school a bit later than normal as a safety net. It probably wasn't a great idea to confront her again, lest I make her cry once more. That I could not bear. But I needed to at least see her. I scanned the crowd, but she wasn't mingling—unfortunately, that shouldn't come as a surprise.

I turned my attention to the parking lot. Maybe she wasn't coming to school today. No. I spotted her bright red Pontiac parked in one of the spaces in front of the school. She was still sitting in the cab, her eyes closed, and her head bobbing wildly to some type of loud music that was leaking from the partially opened windows.

She was beautiful. Graceful—even when she was spazzing out.

And I could never have her. She wasn't meant for me despite how perfect we would be together, despite how my pulse quickened whenever I was near her. I was destined to stand in the shadows, an invisible admirer. _Keep your hand at the level of your eyes_, I inwardly joked.

Her movements slowed to a light sway, making her hair fall gently in front of her face. She rolled her neck, running a thin hand through her wild mane. I would give anything to be the person she would allow to brush away her stray hairs.

Her eyes flickered opened as if she had heard my sentiments. No. She wouldn't choose me; I was a common criminal in her opinion. She didn't trust me. She never would.

Her gaze widen as if she was confused by my presence. I was probably the last person she wanted to see right now. I turned away, sparing her from a prolonged period of unwelcome company, letting the pain wash over me.

My torture was monumentally increased during Euro History class where I was forced to endure an hour of pretending that Phoenix didn't exist, failing miserably, and settling for forcing myself to keep my eyes trained on the whiteboard. Even then, I almost slipped up a few times as I involuntarily let my head turn towards her. Each time I caught myself before making eye contact and each time I was disappointed that I _didn't _make eye contact.

The only thing that stopped me from whipping around and professing my love to Phoenix was the realization that she most likely hated me and if I ventured down that road it was sure to be both awkward and humiliating.

Still the electricity that ignited whenever I was near her raged like a furious forest fire, making it impossible to concentrate on anything besides the goddess sitting behind me.

After what seemed like ages, the bell rang saving me from the torture that could rival the ninth circle. I sprinted from the class, not giving Phoenix the opportunity to enter my line of sight because if that happened when we were in such close proximity to each other I knew I wouldn't be able to control my urges.

I compromised with myself. It was lunch period next and I shared the same session as Phoenix. I would allow myself to stare at her from afar, across the wide cafeteria. She would never have to know about my seriously deranged stalker tendencies as Darius would call them.

After taking a rather lengthy detour in hopes of arriving after Phoenix, which luckily happened to be the case, I stealthily slipped through the doors and claimed a seat that was a good distance away from her table. She was facing the opposite direction which I used as further justification for my disgusting behavior.

Her elbow was propped against the table, her cheek resting against her upturned palm. A cascade of brilliant red curls fell in front of her face as she poured over a rather large book. I craned my neck to get a better view. From this distance the tome resembled one of Darius' research books circa 100 BC. Was it smart for her to be reading an artifact that looked like it should be on display in a museum?

Just as that thought crossed my mind, Madeline strutted over, gave the tome a disapproving once over and muttered something to Phoenix that caused her to jump and animatedly shove the book into her bag.

The girls began to talk as the table filled. I almost combusted when Landon took a seat across from Phoenix. Perhaps I would be enjoying an extracurricular this afternoon—beating the shit out of an extremely stupid human! That sounds like fun.

I exhaled an angry breath and peeled my eyes away from moronic imbecile. What I saw next made me question all of my previous speculations.

Phoenix was effortless conversing with Cliff and Landon. The boys erupted in cheers and high-fived each other and then turned to the radiant Phoenix to bump knuckles with her. A brilliant smile was stretched across her face. From this distance it seemed real enough. Landon said something to her and I fisted my fingers as if doing so would be fair warning of my intentions. The only thing that stopped me from darting over to the table and 'opening up a can of whoop ass,' as Evie would say, was Phoenix's nonchalant grin. She wouldn't be grinning if he said something inappropriate to her, would she?

Apparently all that I had surmised about her was complete fiction. I had spent years protecting her from a distance, never truly getting close enough to make out the details of her flawless face. Still, I had thought I knew her better than myself. She seemed like the quiet, thoughtful brooding type, slow to warm up to anybody that she didn't strictly have to interact with. And here she was, the life of the freaking party.

I notice that one of the girls at the table was giving her a less than friendly glare. Again I felt the urge to 'smack a bitch' (another saying courtesy of Evie) but immediately felt ashamed when I realized that I had no qualms whatsoever about hitting a girl—at least this girl. Still, it was sick!

A few minutes later, however, this two-faced high school drama queen was laughing and conversing with Phoenix as if they were best friends. It was disgusting! Phoenix probably had no idea that her so called friends were such deceitful, insincere human beings! I longed to rescue her from their horrible company, in fact I had even begun to unknowingly walk towards her table, but I was yet again saved by the bell. My God! I was turning into such a cliché human!

How could she bestow her precious company upon such unworthy creatures? She was talking to Landon—_Landon!_ the vulgar pot-head— but wouldn't even give me the time of day! How messed up is that!! She turned to meet my gaze in that very moment, probably seeing the pain, confusion, and jealously flaring up in my eyes. I couldn't let her think that I was stalking her, even though I pretty much was. That would probably bump me a few spaces up on her least favorite persons list, that is, if I wasn't already at the top. I pathetically scurried away, hoping that the crowd of milling teenagers would shield my pitiful state.

*******************

My family was not thrilled at my newly developed antisocial, moping attitude. I hardly surfaced from my studio, which was now plastered with paintings of Phoenix. Darius and Evie were worried about me, which made me feel even guiltier, but I couldn't deal with their endless stream of questioning. Normally our closeness never bothered me. It was actually quite comforting to have two people who were always willing to do anything to make me feel understood and accepted. But not now. I would rather feel the pain of rejection, at least it was something.

"Do you think we should talk to him?" Evie whispered from the hall. She utterly failed at being quiet as I heard her through my closed door.

"Maybe he just needs to be alone," Darius suggested. Good.

"He's obviously upset! We can't just let him sit in that room all day! He'll go mad!" Evie exclaimed in her attempt to be both quiet and forceful.

"He's only been in there for two days and he leaves when he goes to school. You're overreacting, Eve," reassured Darius, though his voice betrayed the nervous concern that he was trying to hide.

"But he's like a zombie whenever he's not in his studio. What the hell happened?!"

"I don't know, but he'll talk to us in time. Let's just leave him alone until he's ready. I suppose it's better that he's sublimating with his art than just being a catatonic freak." Darius achieved the impossible…a small smile flitted across my lips for the first time in almost four days.

"I bet this has to do with Phoenix. Her family's leaving for Tucson this morning. I probably could get away with paying her a visit and hearing her side of the story…" Evie started to say, but I'd had enough.

"Genevieve! Can't I just wallow in my own misery for a few days without you sticking your noise in my business?! Leave me ALONE, and more importantly leave Phoenix ALONE!" I screamed. Evie looked stunned and taken aback. I could count all of the times that I'd yelled at her on one hand in the past century. Her concern didn't deserve this reaction and I instantly felt like a douche. Darius gave me a stern look, but didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry, Eve. I know that you're just trying to help, but I'm still not ready to think about it yet, okay?" I said gently. That was technically a lie. I thought about Phoenix every second of the day. The horrendous insults I had hurled at her in the hallway, the way that scumbag Landon had talked about her, her warm and inviting personality that captivated everybody at her lunch table, and the fact that I could never have her for myself.

I had been under the impression that I was more competent at protecting Phoenix, but apparently I sucked at that too seeing as though she was almost killed by a sylph while I was floating on cloud freaking nine. That was the worst. She was almost hurt because of me. I should be thrown in jail for such a horrible crime!

Evie nodded, obviously still upset. Here comes the guilt that I was trying to avoid. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into a tight bear hug so she that she would understand that I did, in fact, appreciate her concern. Her thin arms snaked around me. All was forgiven. Darius smacked me affectionately on the back before gently pulling Evie from my embrace and leading her into the green house under the pretenses of wishing to see a particularly fascinating plant that Evie was miraculously able to grow in this wasteland. She squealed and dashed a head of him like she was five rather than one hundred and five.

I sighed. I had made such a mess of our lives in record time.

Glancing at my watch, I reluctantly left the house for school. Time for the torture session to begin again. Oh, joy! The sick part was that I would subject myself to the most atrocious torments if it meant being near Phoenix.

The quad was already filling with congregating student when I landed and slipped into the crowd unnoticed. In true stalker form I scanned the crowd for any sign of flaming red hair and porcelain skin. My _hyperaware-Phoenix-radar_ zoned in on its target in less than three seconds.

I strategically position myself so that I would pass by her as she climbed out of her car. I felt her electric stare focused on the back of my head (which I'd turned to make it seem like I wasn't the stalker that I truly was). She glanced away a second later and I turned my chin and peered at her through my periphery.

She clutched an enormous frothy drink that looked like it could cause some serious damage to her blood sugar levels. Of course, she was a Firebird so it probably didn't matter much, but still in looked really unhealthy.

Within the span of my internal health wellness monologue, Madeline had decided that it would be funny to send Phoenix pin wheeling into a huddle of boys. I was fuming. Maddie was supposed to be her best friend, why would she try to hurt Phoenix?

My anger at Madeline quickly redirected to the thin, lanky boy who was now cradling Phi in his scrawny arms. I wanted to tear her from his unworthy grasp, but then I realize that it was the same miscreant that had the honor of dating Phoenix. It felt as though my heart had been ripped into pieces, stomped on my Irish step dancers and then feed to the dogs.

I almost cried when she smiled at this unworthy human and stroked his arm. I was practically gawking at the scene in front of me by now. Apparently there was no God, or else I was on the naughty list and sentences to everlasting misery. She was so beautiful and I knew that I didn't deserve her, but neither did this child!

I heard her musical laugh over the roar of the rambunctious crowd of students that separated us. She moved away, but the idiot savant reclaim the distance like it was his birth right. I recalled the way that my arms felt around her thin, firm stomach and couldn't really blame him for wanting more. But I also knew that Phoenix had qualms with personal space invasion and I avidly hoped that she would flip out at him.

Instead, she smiled. The step dancing morphed into a raging West Side Story gang dance off.

Her eyes drifted over Cayden's shoulder and found mine. In that moment all my pain was gone. Perfection deserves my complete attention. She realized her mistake and shook her head as if to warn me that I would never be the one who she would smile at.

Bring on the stomp crew.

******************

I realize that I should probably be put on the neighborhood predator watch for being such a possessive psycho, but I couldn't help it. I had to see what Phoenix looked like for her date with that unworthy human. It would inevitable cause me pain, but I couldn't control my urge to see her.

I rocketed into the sky at exact 6:50, as I had eavesdropped on a conversation between Madeline and Phi and divulge that the date would begin at 7:00 sharp. If I timed it correctly, I would arrive at her house exactly at seven, just in time to see her leave. The wind rushed threw my hair as a zoomed over the brilliantly lit city. Dusk was the only time this shriveled up wasteland look remotely beautiful.

As I swooped down towards Phoenix's house, I was tempted to knock out Cayden who was nervously jogging up the walkway. I caught sight of the time machine that was masquerading as a car and shuddered. Who did this kid think he was? Marty McFly? Didn't he know that Deloreans were really unsafe cars? If this kid crash and so much as scratched my invincible deity he wouldn't live to see another day! Phoenix probably wouldn't appreciate me beating up her date, though, so I refrained.

Remaining invisible, I positioned myself on the top of a red rock boulder that made residence on Phoenix's front yard. After two soft knocks, Phoenix emerged in the most breathtaking green dress. The full moon illuminated her pearly white skin, casting her in a glowing halo. I wouldn't have thought that she could get any more desirable than she already was, but the dress hugged her in all the right places. She was not only drop dead gorgeous, she was sexy as hell. I tried to shake that thought from my head. It seemed disrespectful to think of her in that light.

Apparently Cayden wasn't oblivious to Phoenix's stunning beauty. An extremely silly grin spread across his face as he offered her a white rose which she accepted with a smile. Jealousy overtook me once again, but it was mingled with sadness. As much as I hated to admit it, Cayden was a nice kid who would treat her right. And Phoenix chose him, not me.

They made friendly conversation for a few minutes, laughing sporadically, before he motioned to where his car was parked around the corner.

Her reaction to the Delorean was classic. A smile danced on my lips as she made fun of his unconventional car choice, but I knew that she was joking with him which caused my smile to falter.

Before I knew it, they were speeding away— he was going much too fast for my liking—and I wouldn't follow them any longer. She didn't deserve a psycho stalker and that's all I was good for.

_Why, _though? Why couldn't she laugh with me—smile, giggle…for God's sake I would even settle for a threatening fist pump. Anything would be better than the disappointed expression that clouded her visage every time she slipped up and met my obsessive gaze. I wasn't even worth a display of outward anger. Instead all I got was indifference—disappointment if I was lucky.

I soared into the sky, needing to get away from Phoenix's house. Perhaps I would be able to think properly if I was away from the place that she slept. _Oh…why did I even bring that fact up? She __**sleeps **__in this house! _

_Alright, pedophile, keep flying!_

Without much higher thinking processing, I arrived at my haven of sorts. There's just something about sitting on the top of a five hundred foot high peak in the middle of the desert that triggers my relaxation response.

But not today!

I couldn't escape Phoenix. My mind wrapped around every memory involving her like I was drowning and just the mere thought of her could provide me with oxygen.

As I sat in silent contemplation, I realized that I could not let Phoenix go. No matter how wrong it was for me to interfere more than I already had. She deserved to live her own life, a life that didn't include me—she had already made that perfectly clear.

I loved her. Loved her more than anything else in this seriously deranged universe. The very thought of leaving her to fend for herself in such a dark and cruel world was ludicrous, something that I refused to do. But the idea of continuing my Lamont Cranston-like existence, lurking in the shadows but never making by presence known, was the worst possible reality imaginable.

Phoenix was going on one tiny date and to me it seemed like the end of the world. What would happen when she started getting serious with someone—someone who wasn't me?

She would never know the extent of my affection. She would forever be under the impression that I'm nothing more than a malicious, kidnapping sycophant who tried and failed to get into her good graces.

WHY?! WHY?! WHY?!

I had to see her. Touch her. Kiss her. Tell her everything.

My thoughts were incoherent, but completely logical. For me, there would never be another Phoenix Faryn. I had to try harder to make her realize that I could ignite the same feels in her as well. '_Much madness is Divinest Sense—To a discerning Eye,'_ after all.

Consumed with my new found confidence, fortified with an insane amount of insanity, I took a running jump off the peak and rocketed towards Phoenix's house.

I landed with an ungraceful thud and pounded on her door with all of my might, adding in a few strings of doorbell rings for good measure. Why was she taking so long? Was she okay in there? Was she with _Cayden_ in there? Oh, Jesus this was such a bad idea. I should turn back now before I do something stupid.

But then she opened the door wearing possible the sexiest outfit ever. Her thin body and full curves were scantly clad in a black lace top with a matching pair of panties.

"Madeline, is it really necessary to wake me up at five thirty in the morning? What's your deal," she murmured as if she was half asleep. Five thirty? What an idiot I was! She was probably exhausted and here I was banging obnoxiously on her door in the wee hours of the morning!

No. I came here for a reason. I _needed _her to know everything!

Her eyes fluttered open after a few seconds of silence and widened immediately when she took in my miserable form.

The fire within me ignited once more. Would she hate or love me for what I was about to say? Probably the former. I stared at her with all of the emotion that possessed my pitiful body.

How could she love such a feeble creature? She was strong, brave, kind—everything that I wasn't. My polar opposite. Urg! I shudder ran through my body and I balled my fist up to try to suppress this outward display of weakness.

"Noah? What's wrong?" Concern filled her voice…hope filled my heart. Perhaps on some miniscule level, she did care about me. Her voice was a panacea for my tense and excessively crazed demeanor. But then again, when did things ever work out for me. I could feel my face fall into its patented emotionless mask. Best not to expect much, that way it won't hurt as bad when she rejects me. "Phoenix?" I croaked. Who was I kidding? It would hurt like a bitch no matter what I expected.

"Noah? What's _wrong?_ Please tell me!" She_ was_ concerned. It wasn't just in my imagination! Neither was that twitch of her hand. Did she want to touch me? If that were true than she didn't consider me a social leper who could only destroy her life. I was glowing for the first time it what seemed like ages.

"Please, Noah."

It was now or never. "I can't do it anymore, Phoenix. I tried. I'm sorry, but I'm not strong enough. Selfishness has never been one of my defining qualities before, but that particular trait seems to have resurfaced with a vengeance. I just can't do it anymore."

Her eyes scrunched up in confusion as if she wasn't sure what I was telling her. Or she understood completely and was disgusted at my unhealthy obsession.

"Don't let me stop you. I understand," she squeaked. What? Now it was my turn to be baffled.

"You are the reason for all of this, Phoenix! I can't bring myself to dwell on any thought that doesn't revolve around you! Everything in my world was built upon your needs, your safety.

I've waited my entire life to feel the electricity that you ignited in me, setting my veins alight with warmth. It began thirteen years ago, and it didn't matter that you were just a child…all I cared about was your intoxicating laugh, your knowing smile." My world revolved around her. How could she not see this undeniable fact?

"My duty became to protect you with all of my might. The hold that you had on me, from the very moment I first laid eyes on you, was most unnatural—I was, I am, fully aware of that fact…"

Could I get any creepier? Argh! There was no way…NO FREAKING WAY…that I could explain the way she made me feel without coming off as a complete loony. I stabbed my hand into my hair and yanked at my locks with all my might. Perhaps if I ripped my scalp off, she would be able to read my thoughts and this would all be that much easier. Or she would call the local psych ward! Arg!

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please, Noah! I can trust you…I can change. Please just don't hate me when you leave. I can't bare it!" she sobbed.

This one fallacious comment was enough to snap me back into reality. She didn't want me to _hate _her. That would mean that she truly did care about. It also meant that she was just as insane as I was. No matter how many years I lived, not one second would be spent hating her.

I had to correct this fictitious thought immediately.

"Hate you? It's an impossibility! The very second we returned you to your family in Arizona thirteen years ago I have been meticulously scouring the general area, desperately trying to keep you safe. Any creature that could so much as give you a nose bleed, I crushed before it had a chance to come within twenty miles of you! Why do you think that your family has to travel so far from home to go on raids? Because I don't trust them enough to protect you properly! The only competent one is Karlstadt! And now with the sylphs in Tucson…" My thoughts drifted to Darius' prediction of the battle that was probably beginning at this very second. She needed me now more than ever, I reasoned. I simply had to take her anxious mind off of her family's inevitable defeat.

My madness was trying to fabricate excuses to be near her. The truth was that I wanted her all to myself. Forever. I forced all of my passion into my stare, hoping that Phoenix would realize that she's what I lived for.

"Phoenix, you have no idea how hard you've made this! I wanted to mutate that little, harmless human for being able to touch you, talk to you in confidence—and I know that is **not** _healthy_! I wanted to hurt him because you allowed him a chance to make you feel special.

I'm sorry that I can't leave you alone! I can't sit by and watch you charm the entire student body… the entire world, a feat you could easily accomplish if you wanted to. I can't pretend that I'm unaffected by your presences any longer! Phoenix, I LOVE YOU! It may be the freakiest, strangest love imaginable, but it's also the strongest. I love you!"

I said it! She knows! I was alit with happiness. Without thinking, I scooped her into my arms, found her lips, and fervently kissed her.

Her body fit mine like a missing puzzle piece. Greedily, I pulled her closer. If I could have my way, these arms would never relinquish their hold.

I began to think that this wasn't the best idea, as she was stiff and unresponsive, but still I persistently showered her with kisses. Instead of being responsible and pulling a way, I urged her to feel the electricity that was coursing through my veins. I grabbed her lower lip between mine and sucked gently.

And then my prayers were answered. She threw her arms around my neck and tangled her willowy fingers into my hair, pulling my head back as she flicked her tongue along my lip.

_Holy Jesus! _I groaned with pleasure and let my hands explore her flawless body.

She wanted more! How could this have happened? I was expecting her to stab me with some ancient Firebird relic, but instead I'm given the gift of perfection!

She hitched her leg over my hip and covered my elated smile with her plush lips. That was all the incentive I needed to grab her other leg and carry her into the hall, all the while never breaking our passionate kiss.

Apparently, there was a God and he _didn't_ hate me.

**THANKS FOR READING!!! Tell me what you thought!!! REVIEW!!**


	12. Glass in the Desert

**NOTE: This is a short and sweet, fluff chapter, but the next update will have us returning to the issue of the sylph-siren attack in Tucson. **

**We're back in Phoenix's point of view so those of you who didn't read the last chapter can pick up from here and not miss a beat. Please leave me some reviews because they give me incentive to write this story! **

**Check out my profile for new picture updates. Happy readings!**

**Chapter Twelve: Glass in the Desert**

"I don't think this is a very good idea." I could feel my brow twist up in a skeptical arch. It didn't really matter what I thought, however, and I knew it. Noah's unexpected visit and the amazing make-out session that ensued had made me realize that I would do anything for an encore presentation, including something a heinous as what he was currently suggesting.

"No, it's a pretty awesome idea. Now come on!" His lighthearted banter threatened to break my resistant disposition. A smile danced on my lips. "Besides, Firebirds were designed to fly anyway."

"Umm yeah…when we're actually able to transform! I'm strictly at the land based creature stage, right now and refuse to change that status. It's posted on my Facebook page, see for yourself."

"It's completely safe! I promise…scouts honor," he said holding up the first two fingers of his right hand.

"I'm sure it is, but I will not be testing that hypothesis. How about we take my car?" I suggested hopefully, biting my lip as I awaited a response.

Noah shook his head in amusement and closed the short distance that separated us. My heart rate quickened as he snaked his arms around my waist and lowered his head so that his forehead was resting against mine.

"Is there any way that I can persuade you to see things my way?" he whispered as his hands traced the outline of my hips. I inwardly cursed myself for changing into a pair of khaki shorts and my favorite Tom Petty tee-shirt. His soft, strong hands had felt so much better on my bare skin, which had been easily accessible with my previous camisole/panty outfit.

"Hmmm…maybe, but I'm very stubborn," I was enthralled by how easy it was to flirt with Noah and my excitement was doubled when he played along.

"Oh, I know. It's a good thing that I'm so persistent." With that, he brought his succulent lips down upon mine and gently traced my bottom lip with his tongue.

I gripped him closer to me, expecting our kiss to escalate as it had before, but he tenderly pulled away and smiled at my disappointed frown. He caressed my chin and rubbed my cheek with his thumb in a soft circular motion.

"I'm sure your clan wouldn't appreciate it if we light the house on fire. I think one destroyed love chair is enough."

"That's what insurance is for," I countered, but to no avail.

"Then we're taking the car," I said in an overly dramatic huff, grabbing the keys off of the hook on the side of the front door. Truthfully, I was relieved. I really didn't want to fly. It seemed so unnatural in human form. If you weren't born with wings, you didn't belong in the sky even if you were bumming a ride from somebody who did have wings.

I heard Noah's soft chuckles as he followed me toward the garage.  
"Watch your back, Phoenix. I'll catch you off guard and force you into the sky when you least expect it."

I glanced over my shoulder and flashed an innocent grin. "Me? With my guard down? I don't think so." I grabbed his hand and lead him to where my Pontiac was parked. "Here. You're driving," I told him while dangling the keys in front of his face.

"Wait, what? I get to drive Phi's pride and joy? You must really love me," he exclaimed, feigning surprise. I grinned and slipped him a casual kiss, brushing his lips with mine, before spinning on my heels and darting to the passenger's side.

When I looked back in his direction, his hand was frozen in the air, still clutching the keys. He was stunned by my nonchalant display of affection. Truthfully, so was I. It was so easy and effortless. "I do." I responded, snapping him out of his stupor and causing a wide smile to spread across his face.

I slid into the soft leather seats, catching and holding Noah's stare. He pulled out of the driveway and began zipping down the highway toward a destination to which I was ignorant. "Where exactly are we going?"

It was a key question that I probably should have asked before I agreed to walk out the front door, but I was completely intrigued and lost in a world that revolved around Noah Wilder and couldn't be bothered with trivial matters.

He smiled and cocked his head in my direction so that his blond locks fell in front of he's face. "I was wondering when you'd ask that," he said with a soft laugh. "But I'm not going to pretend that I'm not loving this _trust _you have in me."

As his words registered, I shook my head in embarrassment and turned to stare at the barren desert landscape that zoomed by. Memories of our scream fest in the hallway last week came flooding back. I wasn't sure if I should be pleased or ashamed.

"No, no, Phoenix. I meant that as a compliment. I was obviously being a jerk when I told you that you couldn't and wouldn't trust anybody, but I'm glad that you chose to trust_ me _when I don't deserve it!" Noah softly corrected, alleviating the awkward atmosphere easily. I scooped up his free right hand and interlaced my fingers with his.

"The sad part is you were completely right. I really don't trust anybody besides Madeline and Karlstadt, occasionally Helios…and now you. Hence why I'm allowing you to drag me off to some unknown location. You haven't answered my question yet," I reminded.

A sly grin crossed his visage making me a little nervous. _Where was he taking me? I hope I didn't embarrass myself wherever we were going._

"I know a few people who have been dying to see you. I'm sorry for not giving you an option, but Evie misses you and would never forgive me if I passed up the opportunity to bring you by our house. Do you remember her?"

"Genevieve? Of course! She was…interesting. Really energetic," I recalled. Though the Wilders had been very hospitable when I was living with them, Evie had been the person to truly make me feel at ease. When I missed my family, she had been right there to tell me everything was okay.

"Still is," he chuckled. "Darius lives with us, too."

"I don't really remember him well. Where's the rest of your family?" I had been dying to ask this question since our previous car ride confessional.

"They didn't understand why I felt the need to stay in close proximity to you. We had already made sure that you were out of harm's way and it's not our business to intrude. My parents, three sister and two brothers are back in Boston. I've always been closest to Evie and Darius despite our age differences." He saw my quizzical look as he turned to meet my gaze. "Darius is the second oldest at two hundred and three. I'm the middle child at the ripe old age of a hundred and forty five. Evie's the baby, only one hundred and five."

I nodded in understanding. "But aren't you old enough now that those age differences don't matter so much? I know that Helios and I are close even though there's a good century and a half between us."

"True, but there are only two of you and Seraphim are rather stuck up. They like hierarchal systems, something that I despise, as does Darius. That's why we get along so well. He listens to my ideas without condescending like my oldest brother, Hector. My parents would regard Hector's thoughts above the rest of us primarily because he is the oldest, but he's a complete idiot. Selfish and foolish beyond belief. Darius is far more intelligent. I bet you ten bucks that his face is pressed in a book when we get home."

"I know how it feels," I sympathized. "The Elders never listen to me, but at least I'll outgrow that when I have some life experience. I couldn't live two thousand years with such a stifling family. Maybe it's better that you escaped."

"Without a doubt," he replied tersely as he pulled off the main road and cruised down a scarcely used dirt pathway.

A large rounded building hovered on the horizon as we sped down the road, leaving a plume of dust in our wake. I squinted through the curtain of rust colored earth, trying to get a better view of the edifice that was most likely the Wilder's home, but it was a futile task and all I was able to make out was a blurred shape gleaming in the late morning sun.

Noah screeched to a halt and the sand cloud gently drifted back to the ground, revealing a magnificent architectural creation. My jaw dropped in amazement as I stared up at the semicircular, futuristic, glass house.

"It's weird looking, I know, but the sun energizes us and can enter the house from dawn until dusk with all the windows. And Evie's plants are afforded the best habitat that the Mojave can offer," he explained.

"Weird. Yes. Awesome. Most definitely! You live in a geodesic dome!! That's ridiculously rad! Can we go inside?" This was quite possibly the coolest building in Arizona. Its round, smooth surface was in stark contrast with the jutting, cuboidal shaped cliffs that littered the surrounding desert. I was curious to see what the inside of such a masterfully designed house would look like. **(Picture of house on my profile page)**

Noah chortled at my excitement and climbed out of his seat, walked around the dust-coated car, and with a soft click, unlatched my door for me. It was very adorable and I rewarded him with a soft kiss on the lips.

This, however, didn't satisfy him and as I pulled away, he fiercely drew me back into his strong embrace. His fingers stabbed into my hair while his lips traveled from my jaw down to my neck until finally stopping at the crook of my collarbone. I shuddered as he sucked and flicked his tongue against my scorching hot skin. My legs quivered with ecstasy, and he hoisted me against the car, pinning me in place with his hips. My ankles locked behind his back. His mouth found mine and I eagerly parted my lips allowing his tongue entry. He flicked and rolled his tongue in the most erotic fashion, causing me to melt into his chiseled body. A soft chuckle escaped his mouth as I purred with delight. I gently clamped his bottom lip between my teeth and nibbled before repositioning myself so that my core was resting directly on top of his hard on.

Now I was the one chuckling as he groaned into my neck.

"Oh, that's pleasant. Evie, we really do need to get curtains," I heard a gruff, but kind voice say. Instantly, I was mortified and clambered back to the ground, a good two feet away from Noah, who was shaking with laughter. How could he think this was funny? His brother and sister had just seen us in a pretty risqué position; how was he not embarrassed? **(Pictures of Evie and Darius on profile)**

"Shut up, Darius. You're such a peeping Tom," said the slender, elf like creature who I knew to be Genevieve. She was radiantly glowing with happiness, not having changed a bit from the last time I met her. With two quick strides, she flitted over to me and wrapped her thin, willowy arms around my neck. "Phoenix! I've missed you so much. I'm so happy that you didn't mollywop my brother for being the total tool bag he is." I erupted into a gale of laughter at her spunky exclamation. The obvious adoration for her older brother was not disguised by her hilarious sentiments.

"I came very close, Evie," I joked with her, and she squeezed me tighter. "I've missed you, too." And I truly had. She relinquished her embrace and her face lit up with a genuine smile, adding to her beauty.

She was about an inch or two taller than me, with eyes the same shade as her brother's. Her caramel-bronze colored hair bounced down to her chest in springy banana curls.

The man standing behind her was the complete opposite of both Noah and Genevieve. Their fair completion and Aryan features were in utter contrast to his tan skin, dark, brooding eyes, and glossy black hair. He did, however, share Noah's prominent jaw line and tall frame, but besides that and the ever presence glow, he could have past for a stranger.

Darius' lips hitched up in a grin and he waved. "I'm glad you're here, Phoenix. It'll be a nice change to have somebody besides these two goons for company." And with that, he too folded me into a bear hug.

"Umm...thanks," I laughed as we pulled away from each other. Noah's arm snaked back around to my hip, as if we were magnetized and only attracted one another. I smiled up at him and snuggled into his chest.

Darius rolled his eye, but a twitch of his upper lip betrayed his amusement. Evie, not missing a beat, smacked him in the chest.

"Well, bring her inside, Noah! Where are your manners?" she cried, motioning us to follow her through the oddly shaped front door. I felt Noah's chest vibrate with silent titters and I smiled at the sincerity of his siblings.

**Thanks for reading and just take TWO seconds to write me a review! I'll give you a preview of the next chapter if you do! And believe me I don't skimp on my previews either! SO REVIEW!!**


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